•^. 


f. 


THE  BUILDING  OF  A  BOOK 


THE 

BUILDING  OF  A  BOOK 

A  SEKIES  OF  PRACTICAL  ARTI- 
CLES WRITTEN  BY  EXPERTS  IN 
THE  VARIOUS  DEPARTMENTS  OF 
BOOK  MAKING  AND  DISTRIBUTING 

WITH   AN   INTRODUCTION 
BY  THEODORE  L.  DE  VINNE 

EDITED  BY 

FREDERICK  H.   HITCHCOCK 


THE  GRAITON   PRESS 
PUBLISHERS  NEW  YORK 


COPTEIGHT,    1906, 

Bt  the  GRAFTON  PRESS. 


Published  December,  1906. 


©etiicatctj 

TO    RE.VDERS    AND    LOVERS 

OF  BOOKS  THROUGHOUT 

THE  COUNTRY 


FOREWORD 

"  The  Building  of  a  Book  "  had  its  origin  in 
the  wish  to  give  practical,  non-technical  infor- 
mation to  readers  and  lovers  of  books.  I  hope 
it  will  also  be  interesting  and  valuable  to  those 
persons  who  are  actually  engaged  in  book  mak- 
ing and  selUng. 

All    of    the    contributors  are  experts  in  thoir 

respective    departments,   and    hence   write   with 

authority.      I  am  exceedingly  grateful   to   them 

for  their  very  generous  efforts  to  make  the  book 

a  success. 

THE  EDITOR. 


vU 


ARTICLES   AND   CONTRIBUTORS 


Introduction 1 

By  Theodore  L.  De  Vinne,  of  Theodore  L. 
De  Vinne  &  Company,  Printers,  New  York. 

The  Author 4 

By  George  W.  Cable,  Author  of  "  Grandissimes," 
"The  Cavalier,"  and  other  books.  Resident  of 
Northampton,  Massachusetts. 

The  Literary  Agent 9 

By  Paul  R.  Reynolds,  Literary  Agent,  New  York, 
representing  several  English  publishing  houses  and 
American  authors. 

The  Literary  Adviser 16 

By  Francis  W.  Halsey,  formerly  Editor  of  the 
Nexo  York  Times  Saturday  Itevieio  of  Books,  and 
literary  adviser  for  D.  Appleton  &  Company.  Now 
literary  adviser  for  Funk  &  Wagnalls  Company, 
New  York. 

The  Manufacturing  Department  ...      25 
By  Lawton  L.  Walton,  in  charge  of  the  manu- 
facturing department  of  The  Macmillan  Company, 
Publishers,  New  York. 

The  Making  of  Type       .....       31 
By  L.  Boyd  Benton,  Mechanical  Manager  of  the 
Jersey  City  factory  of  the  American  Typo  Found- 
ers' Company. 

Hand  Composition  and  Ki.kctkotyping  .       41 

By  J.  Steakns  CrsniNc;,  of  J.  S.  CushiiiK  &  Com- 
pany, Norwood,  Ma-ssachiisotts,  f)no  of  the  three 
concerns  forming  the  Norwood  Press. 

ix 


ARTICLES  AND  CONTRIBUTORS 


PAOE 


Composition  by  the  Linotype  Machine         .      53 
By  Frederick  J.  Warbcrton,  Treasurer  of  the 
Mergenthaler  Linotype  Machine  Company. 

Composition  by  the  Monotype  Machine       .      66 
By  Paul  Nathan,  a  member  of  Wood  &  Nathan, 
New  York,  selling  agents  for  the  Lanston  Mono- 
type Machine. 

Proof-reading 77 

By  George  L.  Miller,  with  the  Charles  Francis 
Press,  New  York. 

Paper  Making 89 

By  Herbert  W.  Mason,  of  S.  D.  Warren  &  Com- 
pany, Paper  Makers,  Boston,  Massachusetts. 

Presswork 99 

By  Walter  J.Berwick,  of  Berwick  &  Smith  Com- 
pany, Norwood,  Massachusetts,  one  of  the  three 
concerns  constituting  the  Norwood  Press. 

The  Printing  Press 112 

By  Otto  L.  Raabe,  with  R.  Hoe  &  Company,  New 
York,  Printing  Press  Manufacturers. 

Printing  Ink 139 

By  James  A.  Ullman,  of  Sigmuud  Ullman  Com- 
pany, Ink  Makers,  New  York. 

The  Printer's  Roller 144 

By  Albert  S.  Bcrlingham,  President  of  the  Na- 
tional Roller  Company,  New  York. 

The  Illustrator 154 

By  Charles  D.  Williams,  Artist,  New  York. 

Half-tone,  Line,  and  Color  Plates      .         .     164 
By  Emlyn  M.  Gill,  President  of  the  Gill  Engrav- 
ing Company,  New  York. 
X 


ARTICLES  AND  CONTRIBUTORS 


PAGE 


The  Wax  Process 176 

By  Robert  D.  Servoss,  Engraver  of  maps,  etc., 
by  the  wax  process,  New  York. 

Making  Intaglio  Plates  ....     180 

By  Elmer  Latham,  Manager  of  the  mechanical 
department  of  M.  Kramer  &  Company,  Photo- 
gravure Makers,  Brooklyn,  New  York. 

Printing  Intaglio  Plates       ....     190 
By  George  W.  H.  Ritchie,  Printer  of  photogra- 
vure plates,  etchings,  etc..  New  York. 

The  Gelatine  Process 198 

By  Emil  Jacobi,  Manager  of  the  factory  of  the 
Campbell  Art  Company,  New  York,  and  Elizabeth, 
New  Jersey. 

Lithography 204 

By  Charles  Wilhelms,  late  of  Siickett-Wilhelms 
Lithographing  and  Printing  Company,  Brooklyn, 
New  York. 

Cover  Designing 216 

By  Amy  Richards,  Artist,  New  York,  her  specialty 
being  cover  designs. 

The  Cover  Stamps 221 

By  George  Becker,  of  Becker  Brothers  Company, 
Die  Cutlers,  New  York. 

Book  Cloths      .......     226 

Bt  Henry  P.  Kendall,  of  the  Holliston  Mills, 
Book  Cloth  Manufacturers,  Norwood,  Massachu- 
setts. 

Book  Leathers  ......     234 

By  Ellery  C.  Bartlett,  of  Louia  Dejonge  &  Com- 
pany, Dressers  and  Importers  of  Book  Leathers, 
New  York. 

xi 


ARTICLES  AND  CONTRIBUTORS 

PAGB 

The  Binding 237 

By  Jesse  Fellowes  Tapley,  President  of  J.  F. 
Taplcy  Company,  Binders,  New  York. 

Special  Bindings 248 

By  Henry  Blackwell,  Fine  Binder,  New  York. 

Copyrighting     .......     257 

By  Frederick  H.  Hitchcock,  Member  of  the 
New  York  Bar ;  President  of  The  Grafton  Press, 
Publishers,  New  York. 

Publicity   ...  ....    269 

By  Vivian  Burnett,  formerly  in  charge  of  the 
Publicity  Department  of  McClure,  Phillips  &  Com- 
pany, Publishers,  New  York. 

Reviewing  and  Criticising     ....     292 
By  Walter  Littlefield,  a  Member  of  the  Staff 
of  the  New  York  Times  Saturday  Beview  of  Books, 
and  literary  correspondent  of  the  Chicago  Record- 
Herald,  and  other  papers. 

The  Travelling  Salesman      ....     303 
By  Harry  A.  Thompson,  formerly  representing 
John  Lane,   and    Small,    Maynard   &   Company, 
Publishers.     Now  one  of  the  Associate  Editors  of 
the  Saturday  Evening  Post,  Philadelphia. 

Selling  at  Wholesale 320 

By  Joseph  E.  Bray,  formerly  with  A.  C.  McClurg 
&  Company,  Wholesalers,  Chicago.  Now  with  the 
Outing  Publishing  Company,  New  York. 

Selling  at  Retail 328 

By  Warren  Snyder,  Manager  of  the  Book  Stores 
of  John  Wanamaker,  Philadelphia  and  New  York. 

Selling  by  Subscription 339 

By  Charles  S.  Olcott,  Manager  of  the  Subscrip- 
tion Department  of  Messrs.  Houghton,  Mifflin  & 
Company,  New  York. 

xii 


ARTICLES  AND  CONTRIBUTORS 

PAGE 

Selling  at  Auction  ......    350 

By  John  Anderson,  Jr.,  President  of  the  Ander- 
son Auction  Company,  New  York. 

Selecting  for  a  Public  Library  .        .        .     362 
By  Arthur  E.  Bostwick,  Chief  of  the  Circula- 
tion Department  of  the  New  York  Public  Library. 

Rare  and  Second-hand  Books        .        .        .     370 
By  Charles  E.  Goodspeed,  Dealer  in  Rare  and 
Second-hand  Books,  Boston. 


XllI 


THE   BUILDING   OF   A   BOOK 

INTRODUCTION 
By  Theodore  L.  De  Vinne 

To  the  hasty  observer  printing  seems  the  simplest 
of  arts  or  crafts.  The  small  boy  who  has  been 
taught  to  spell  can  readily  arrange  lettered  blocks 
of  wood  in  readable  words,  and  that  arrangement 
is  rated  by  many  as  the  great  feature  of  printing. 
With  his  toy  printing-press  he  can  stamp  paper 
upon  inked  type  in  so  deft  a  manner  that  admiring 
friends  may  say  the  print  is  good  enough  for  any- 
body. The  elementary  processes  of  printing  are 
indeed  so  simple  that  they  might  have  justified 
Dogberry  in  adding  typography  to  the  accom- 
plishments of  the  "reading  and  writing  that  come 
by  nature."  With  this  delusion  comes  the  desire 
for  amateur  performance.  Men  who  would  not 
undertake  to  make  a  coat  or  a  pair  of  shoes  are 
confident  of  their  ability  to  make  or  to  direct  the 
making  of  a  book. 

In  real  practice  this  apparent  simplicity  disap- 
pears. Commercial  printing  is  never  done  q\iickly 
or  cheaply  by  amateur  methods.     The  piinting- 

1 


THE  BUILDING  OF  A  BOOK 

house  that  undertakes  to  print  miscellaneous 
books  for  publishers  must  be  provided  with  tons 
of  type  of  different  faces  and  sizes.  It  needs 
type-making  and  type-setting  machines  of  great 
complexity,  printing-presses  of  great  size  and  cost, 
and  much  curious  machinery  in  the  departments 
of  electrotyping  and  bookbinding;  but  these 
machines,  intended  to  relieve  the  drudgery  of 
monotonous  manual  labor,  do  not  supplant  the 
necessity  for  a  higher  skill  in  craftsmanship. 
They  really  make  that  craftsmanship  more  diffi- 
cult. 

The  difficulty  of  good  book-making  is  greater 
now  than  ever.  Improvements  made  during  the 
last  century  in  processes  of  engraving  and  the 
making  of  ink  and  paper  and  the  increasing  ex- 
actions of  critical  readers  and  reviewers,  compel 
a  closer  attention  to  the  petty  detail  of  manufac- 
ture. The  novice  soon  finds  that  some  of  the 
methods  recently  introduced  are  incompatible 
with  other  methods.  For  the  production  of  a 
superior  book  practical  experience  and  theoretical 
study  of  all  processes  are  needed  to  harmonize 
their  antagonisms.  One  has  but  to  read  over  the 
head-lines  of  the  foregoing  table  of  contents  to 
note  how  many  different  arts,  crafts,  and  sciences 
are  required  in  the  construction  of  a  well-made 
book.  A  reading  of  these  articles  makes  one  under- 
stand the  scope  and  limitations  of  each  art  and  the 
necessity  for  its  proper  adjustment  in  its  relation 

2 


INTRODUCTION 

to  the  workmanship  of   other  crafts  with  which 
it  may  be  associated. 

For  this  purpose  this  book  has  been  prepared. 
It  is  believed  that  a  compilation  of  the  experience 
of  men  eminent  in  their  respective  departments 
will  be  a  useful  guide  to  the  amateur  in  author- 
sliip  or  the  novice  in  publication. 


THE   AUTHOR 

By  George  W.  Cable 

In  a  certain  fine  and  true  sense  books  of  imagina- 
tive writing  —  and  the  present  writer  cannot  under- 
take to  speak  of  any  others  —  are  not  built,  but 
born.  Nevertheless,  there  has  always  been  an 
unlucky  tendency  on  the  part  both  of  writers 
and  readers  to  overstate  this  non-mechanical 
nature  of  poetic  works,  whether  in  prose  or  verse, 
and  to  give  the  processes  of  this  production  that 
air  of  mystery  —  not  to  say  miracle  —  in  which 
art  is  always  tempted  to  veil  its  methods.  There 
is  an  anatomy  of  the  book,  which  is  not  its  life, 
but  is  just  as  real  as  its  life,  and  only  less  essential. 
There  is  an  architecture  awaiting  the  book  while 
it  is  still  in  its  author's  brain ;  and  for  want  of  due 
regard  to  this  architecture's  laws,  for  want  of  a 
sound  and  shapely  anatomy,  many  a  book  misses 
the  success  —  not  commercial  only,  but  spiritual 
as  well  —  which  the  amount  of  toil  and  talent 
spent  on  it  ought  to  earn.  And  now  that  reading 
has  become  so  democratic  that  the  fortunes  of  a 
book  of  the  imagination  are  largely  in  the  hands 

4 


THE   AUTHOR 

of  the  Crowd,  which  cares  nothing  and  feels  nothing 
as  to  grace  of  form  and  tone  in  what  it  reads,  the 
commercial  risk  in  the  physical  deforixdties  of  a 
book  is  not  so  great  as  the  risk  of  its  spiritual  fail- 
ure. Now,  too,  that  the  magazines  have  made  it 
so  very  desirable  to  the  author  that  his  work 
should  be  printed  first  in  them,  their  mechanical  lim- 
itations, which  are  legion,  bear  upon  the  author  and 
often  seem  to  him  (and  his  personal  friends)  to 
bear  cruelly.  This  difficulty  is  not  a  flattering  or 
gentle  discipline,  nor  are  its  discriminations  always 
good  or  always  bad.  It  works  almost  as  crudely 
as  that  of  the  stage  works  on  the  theatrical  dra- 
matist. A  cunning  subservience  to  it  covers  a 
multitude  of  sins,  and  often  achieves  for  the  Hter- 
ary  craftsman  place  and  preference  over  the  truer 
artist,  if  he  overlooks  the  need  of  being  also  a 
craftsman.  Yet  it  is  the  hard  demand,  not  of  the 
magazines  alone,  but  of  every  highest  interest, 
that  the  cure  for  this  injustice  be  found  in  the 
truest  artist  making  himself  also  the  cunningest 
craftsman.  "He  that  would  be  first  among  you 
let  him  be  the  servant  of  all." 

Well,  then,  what  are  some  of  these  mechanical 
rules  of  construction  ?  The  space  here  allowed  — 
see  there,  for  instance  !  —  gives  room  for  but  a  hint 
or  two;  but,  first  of  all,  an  author  should  know 
before  the  actual  constructure  of  his  creation  bc^gins 
to  rise,  how  long  it  is  to  be.  Of  course  he  would 
like  to  say  he  cannot  tell;    that  he  is  in  the  liands 


THE  BUILDING  OF  A   BOOK 

of  his  muse,  and  all  that;  but  the  truth  is,  his 
"artistic  temperament"  is  trying  to  shirk  the 
drudgery  of  the  engineering  problem  involved. 
It  is  far  better  for  him  as  an  artist  that  he  should 
thoroughly  solve  that  problem;  it  will  take  time 
and  labor,  but  it  need  not  waste  them.  The  length 
of  his  work  will,  or  should,  depend  upon  the  breadth 
of  it ;  by  which  we  mean  that  a  certain  fulness  of 
treatment  involves  a  certain  length.  For  instance, 
one  cannot  reasonably  hope  to  keep  a  story  short 
if  it  is  about  several  persons  and  involves  a  con- 
flict of  their  characters  or  fates.  That  is  the  second 
necessity ;  the  length  must  be  planned  in  proportion 
to  the  breadth.  But,  thirdly,  both  length  and 
breadth  should  be  governed  by  the  importance, 
the  dignity,  the  substantial  value,  the  business, 
the  substance,  the  spiritual  stuff,  of  which  the 
projected  book  is  to  consist.  Hence  the  writer  of 
true  Uterary  conscience  will  put  the  first,  as  above 
named,  last,  and  the  last  first :  spiritual  substance, 
then  breadth,  then  length. 

In  order  to  make  fairly  sure  of  these  essentials, 
as  well  as  for  other  reasons,  the  author  should 
have  a  dear  determination  of  all  the  main  features 
of  thp/mructure  he  proposes  to  raise.  Especially 
the  oridge  should  not  be  itself  begun  until  its 
builder  knows  very  definitely  where  and  how  it  is 
to  reach  the  other  shore;  nothing  between  the 
beginning  and  the  end  is  so  important  to  be  sure 
about  from  the  beginning,  as  the  end.     There  is 

6 


THE  AUTHOR 

a  great  difference  among  writers  as  to  the  sense 
of  need  for  a  complete  preliminary  framework  on 
which  to  build.  But  beyond  doubt  many  feeble, 
many  abortive,  results  come  of  having  too  Uttle 
preparatory  framework,  too  slender  a  scenario, 
to  use  a  playwright's  word  which  authors  and 
editors  are  borrowing  more  and  more. 

It  seems  good  that  a  hterary  artist  should  always 
write  for  himself.  Yet,  of  course,  he  should  write 
unselfishly;  we  may  say  he  would  do  well  always 
to  aim  at  the  entertainment  of  the  noblest  minds, 
even  when  he  does  not  exhort  their  loftiest  moods. 
But  he  certainly  achieves  much  besides  if,  while  he 
does  thef^^^llmgs,  at  the  same  time  and  in  the  same^ 
doing  he  entertains  the  great  commonalty  of  readers!^ 
If  he  does  this,  and  all  the  more  if  he  has  the  rare 
genius  to  do  all  these  in  one,  his  books,  we  may 
almost  say,  ought  to  go  first  through  the  maga- 
zines. If  he  wants  them  to  do  so,  then  it  will  be 
a  godsend  to  himself  as  well  as  to  the  editors  if 
he  will  lay  his  plans,  as  far  as  they  have  any 
aritlimetical  character  (and  they  can  have  much), 
according  to  the  magazines'  mechanical  exigencies. 
He  should  know  just  how  much  of  any  magazine 
page  his  own  typewritten  pages  will  occupy; 
how  many  of  its  own  pages  that  magazine  com- 
monly allows  to  writings  of  the  kind  he  proposes 
to  ofTer  —  how  many  yearly,  and  how  many 
monthly;  and  so  on.  It  is  well  that  he  should 
know  the  best  timo  of  the  magazine's  business 

7 


THE  BUILDING   OF   A   BOOK 

year  in  which  to  seek  to  arrange  with  them.  To 
a  certain  degree  magazines  actually  "lay  in  stock" 
for  a  coming  season  and  after  that,  for  a  time, 
are  languid  buyers. 

Be  it  understood  that  these  remarks  are  as  im- 
promptu as  a  letter,  and  are  intended  only  as  hints 
and  pointers.  Yet  much  as  they  leave  unstated, 
let  a  word  be  said  as  to  the  relation  of  the  author 
to  his  book  after  he  and  all  the  later  artisans  of 
it  have  done  their  several  parts  in  its  building, 
and  it  is  built.  The  care  of  the  edifice  ought 
still  to  be,  far  more  than  it  commonly  is,  in  the 
author's  hands.  The  publisher  has  the  fortunes 
of  hundreds  of  works  to  promote  and  keep  in 
repair;  the  author  has  but  his  own.  Even  an 
author  may  say  that  any  publisher  is  glad  to  have 
suggestions  from  any  author  as  to  plans  for  keeping 
the  children  of  that  author's  OAvn  brain  alive  in 
the  world. 


THE  LITERARY  AGENT 
By  Paul  R.  Reynolds 

The  work  of  the  literary  agent  in  the  building 
of  a  book  may  be  roughly  divided  into  two  parts, 
first,  in  relation  to  the  author,  and  second,  in  rela- 
tion to  the  publisher.  When  the  author  has 
finished  his  manuscript,  he  brings  it  to  the  hterary 
agent  to  be  placed.  The  literary  agent  reads  it 
and  decides  what  house  is  most  likely  to  publish 
such  a  book.  He  does  not  offer  a  book  on  Nervous 
Disorders  to  a  house  which  never  publishes  that 
kind  of  book.  He  does  not  offer  a  sensational 
novel  to  a  conservative  house.  He  offers  a  book 
on  Political  Economy  to  a  house  which  publishes 
that  class  of  book  and  which  is  in  touch  with  the 
people  who  buy  books  of  that  order.  Among 
a  number  of  houses  which  bring  out  books  of  any 
definite  class,  he  can  select  the  hou.se  that  is  most 
energetic  in  pushing  its  books,  that  has  behind  it 
a  prestige  and  name  whicli  will  help  its  publica- 
tions, and  which  possesses  the  requisite  skill  to  lay 
its  wares  before  the  public  advantageously.  Tlie 
success  of  many  a  book  has  depended  more  on  the 

9 


THE  BUILDING  OF  A  BOOK 

shrewdness  of  the  pubhsher  in  laying  it  before 
the  public  in  attractive  and  seductive  guise  than 
either  the  public  or  the  author  often  realize. 

If  the  pubhsher  accepts  the  manuscript  offered 
to  him  by  the  literary  agent,  the  latter  arranges 
terms  with  the  publisher,  making  as  good  a  busi- 
ness arrangement  as  all  the  conditions  justify. 
He  draws  up  the  contract  with  the  publisher,  and 
after  the  book  is  pubhshed,  he  collects  the  royal- 
ties from  the  publisher  as  they  fall  due.  He  enables 
the  author  to  avoid  any  house  that  has  a  reputation 
for  sharp  practices.  Knowing  the  personnel  of 
the  different  houses,  he  knows  the  proper  man 
to  approach  in  offering  his  book,  and  he  is  of  aid 
to  the  author  in  blowing  his  trumpet  for  him, 
telling  what  his  previous  work  has  been,  in  a  way 
that  the  author,  sensitive  as  he  often  is,  cannot 
properly  do.  In  short,  the  agent  takes  off  the 
author's  shoulders  all  the  business  end  of  publish- 
ing, leaving  him  free  to  devote  himself  to  his  own 
proper  vocation  without  the  vexatious  business 
worries  which  he  finds  all  the  more  vexatious 
because  he  has  not  had  any  training  or  experience 
in  coping  with  them. 

I  think  the  Uterary  agent  can  be,  and  as  time 
goes  on,  will  be,  of  increasing  use  to  the  publisher. 
The  literary  agent,  if  he  understands  his  business, 
takes  up  no  manuscript  in  which  he  does  not  be- 
Ueve.  When  he  brings  the  publisher  a  manuscript, 
it  is  because  he  thinks  there  is  money  in  such 

10 


THE   LITERARY   AGENT 

manuscript  for  the  publisher,  for  the  author,  and 
as  far  as  commission  is  concerned,  for  himself. 
\Vhile  it  is  an  advantage  to  the  author  that  he 
should  have  the  judgment  of  the  agent,  because 
the  agent  looks  at  any  manuscript  from  a  cold- 
blooded business  point  of  view,  it  is  also  of  ad- 
vantage to  the  publisher  to  know  that  the  agent, 
free  from  the  confidence  and  perhaps  the  bias  that 
the  author  has  about  his  own  wares,  is  offer- 
ing him  any  individual  manuscript  because  he 
(the  agent)  beUeves  it  will  sell.  The  result  is 
that  the  publisher  gets  to  know  that  the  agent 
won't  offer  him  a  manuscript  that  is  not  up  to 
a  certain  standard,  and  which,  even  though  it 
should  in  the  end  not  prove  suitable  to  this  pub- 
Usher's  special  list,  must  receive  careful  considera- 
tion. In  this  way  the  agent  becomes  of  use  to 
the  publisher  because  he  tries  never  to  offer  him 
anything  that  is  mere  trash  or  that  simply  wastes 
the  publisher's  time.  Some  time  ago  a  publishing 
house  wrote  to  an  agent  telling  him  they  wanted 
a  certain  kind  of  novel  for  th(!  next  season,  and 
describing,  with  a  good  deal  of  particularity,  the 
kind  of  book  they  wanted.  The  agent,  after 
tliinking  the  matter  over,  submitted  two  manu- 
scripts. The  publisher  con.sidered  them  and  ac- 
cepted both.  In  such  a  case  the  agent  had  cer- 
tainly been  of  great  use  to  the  publisher.  He  had 
given  him  what  he  was  looking  for,  and  had  saved 
him  the  nuisance  and  the  actual  expense  of  read- 

11 


THE  BUILDING  OF  A   BOOK 

ing  through  a  large  number  of  manuscripts  before 
finding  the  right  one. 

It  may  be  admitted  frankly  that  the  agent  is 
sometimes  accused  of  asking  more  for  his  wares 
than  they  are  worth.  In  reply  to  this  accusation 
it  may  be  said  that  asking  is  not  getting,  and  the 
agent  who  asks  more  than  the  market  justifies, 
and  thereby  spoils  the  chances  of  a  satisfactory 
arrangement,  is  not  serving  the  best  interests  of 
his  cUent.  On  the  other  hand,  he  will  get  the  best 
price  obtainable  in  the  market,  taking  into  con- 
sideration the  character  of  the  pubUshing  house, 
its  prestige  and  ability  in  pushing  books,  and  as 
he  is  offering  and  selUng  every  day  he  can  generally 
obtain  a  better  price  and  make  a  better  arrange- 
ment than  the  author  can.  Reahzing  that  the 
author  and  publishers  are  partners  in  an  enter- 
prise whose  success  depends  upon  a  frank  and 
clear  understanding,  he  will  do  his  best  to  make 
such  relations  friendly  and  harmonious  and  to 
the  mutual  advantage  of  both  parties  to  the  con- 
tract, never  forgetting,  however,  that  his  especial 
client  is  the  author,  and  that  it  is  his  duty  to 
represent    the    author's    interests. 

One  of  the  notable  features  of  the  times  is  the 
growth  of  magazines.  The  arrangement  for  the 
seriahzation  of  a  long  story  in  a  magazine,  the 
placing  of  short  stories  and  articles  in  magazines, 
the  selUng  of  stories,  articles,  and  books  in  England, 
and  arranging  the  simultaneous  issue  in  both  coun- 

12 


THE  LITERARY  AGENT 

tries,  —  all  this  involves  an  immense  amouni  of 
detail  which  one  has  to  eneomiter  fully  to  realize. 
Sometimes,  where  an  author  is  putting  out  a  good 
many  manuscripts,  the  complications  are  numer- 
ous and  perplexing.  In  the  case  of  one  author 
living  abroad  whom  we  will  call  Smith,  a  book 
was  arranged  with  a  house  A,  and  a  second  with 
a  house  B.  The  author  was  taken  ill,  could  not 
finish  the  first  book  in  time  so  that  A  had  to  post- 
pone it  till  the  next  year,  and  this  meant  that  B 
had  to  postpone  his  book.  Then  a  publishing  house 
took  a  story  which  the  same  author  had  sold  direct 
to  it  for  magazine  publication,  without  reserving 
book  rights,  and  brought  such  story  out  in  book 
form.  This  meant  another  complication.  After 
B  had  postponed  his  book  twice  the  author  pro- 
duced another  book  which  he  thought  better  than 
the  second  book,  and  wished  published  before 
B's  book.  Four  times  B  was  asked  to  postpone 
his  book  and  each  time  agreed  to,  though  not 
without  certain  quid  pro  quos.  All  these  matters 
the  agent  had  to  straigliten  out,  while  the  author 
was  living  three  thousand  miles  away. 

The  agoDt  can  also  bo  of  use  to  the  author  be- 
cause he  looks  at  any  manuscript  in  an  objective 
rather  than  in  a  subjective  way.  The  author, 
who  has  toijf'd  and  striven  over  the  child  of  his 
brain,  regards  it  as  fathers  generally  regard  their 
children.  Sometimes  he  cannot  see  its  faults, 
sometimes   he   misjudges   lis   virtues.     Tt    is  too 

13 


THE  BUILDING   OF   A   BOOK 

much  a  part  of  himself  to  be  regarded  coldly 
and  cahnly.  When  the  publisher  makes  an  offer 
for  a  book  the  author  may  with  hasty  disdain  wish 
to  reject  it  as  entirely  inadequate,  or  he  may  wish 
to  accept  it  with  eager  haste,  so  glad  is  he  for 
the  chance  of  seeing  the  book  in  print.  In  this 
state  of  hasty  acceptance  or  hasty  rejection,  the 
agent  can  look  upon  an  offer  calmly  and  dispassion- 
ately, to  be  accepted  or  rejected  as  the  author's 
best  interests  shall  dictate.  Then  again,  as  time 
goes  on,  more  and  more  authors  must  live  at  a 
distance  from  the  great  centres.  Some  of  them 
live  in  the  uttermost  parts  of  the  earth.  One 
author  wrote  recently  to  his  agent  from  the  wilds 
of  Africa,  saying,  "I  have  found  a  nicely  secluded 
spot,  surrounded  by  gorillas  and  chimpanzees." 
To  such  authors  it  is  essential  that  they  should 
have  an  agent  who  is  in  touch  with  the  publishers 
who  are  pubhshing  their  works. 

Then  again,  the  agent  can  be  of  use  to  the 
author  in  sparing  him  some  of  the  bitterness  that 
the  author  feels  when  his  manuscript  is  rejected. 
Who  that  has  read  it  can  ever  forget  the  story 
of  how  Hawthorne,  while  still  struggling  for  suc- 
cess, submitted  a  collection  of  short  stories  to  a 
pubhsher,  and  of  how  the  pubhsher,  not  having 
much  capital,  laid  the  manuscript  aside,  intend- 
ing to  pubUsh  it  when  things  were  a  little  easier; 
and  how  Hawthorne,  after  months  of  dreary 
waiting,  wrote  an  angry  letter  to  the  pubhsher, 

H 


THE   LITERARY  AGENT 

and  when  he  got  the  manuscript  back,  in  bitter, 
hopeless  rage  burned  it  up?  Years  afterward 
the  publisher  admitted  that  the  manuscript  con- 
tained some  of  the  most  exquisite  work  Hawthorne 
had  ever  written.  This  story  emphasizes  the 
intense  sensitiveness  of  the  author  about  his 
work.  Often  after  two  or  three  rejections  he  will 
give  the  manuscript  up  as  hopeless  and  of  no 
value,  while  it  may  be  that  he  has  only  failed  to 
find  the  house  that  is  looking  for  that  kind  of  book. 
An  agent,  if  he  has  once  taken  the  book  up,  does 
not  drop  it  so  quickly.  Only  recently  an  agent 
sold  a  book  which  had  been  declined  by  fifteen 
houses  to  the  sixteenth.  He  is  willing  to  perse- 
vere with  a  manuscript  and  with  an  author,  in 
spite  of  rebuffs  and  discouragement,  if  he  believes 
that  the  author  has  merit ;  and  if  he  is  wilHng  to 
persevere  with  an  author  in  the  day  of  small  things, 
he  will  reap  his  reward  later  on. 

In  conclusion  the  writer  believes  that  the  agent, 
as  he  has  tried  to  indicate,  can  perform  a  definite 
and  valuable  service  to  both  author  and  publisher 
by  helping  the  author  to  bring  his  wares  to  the 
man  who  will  pubhsh  them  most  advantageously, 
and  by  obtaining  for  the  author  the  prices  that 
such  wares  are  worth  in  the  open  market,  and 
he  can  help  tiir^  publisher  l)y  acting  as  a  sifter  and 
bringing  before  the  publisher  and  editor  manu- 
scripts that  are  really  worthy  of  consideration. 


15 


THE   LITERARY  ADVISER 
By  Francis  W.  Halsey 

The  position  of  literary  adviser  to  a  publishing 
house  differs  in  its  duties,  according  as  the  ad- 
viser may  be  employed  in  a  house  highly  organized, 
or  in  one  that  is  not.  When  the  organization  is 
such  that  the  duties  in  the  various  departments 
are  not  well  differentiated,  the  adviser's  work 
will  be  likely  to  involve  many  things  that  properly 
belong  to  the  manufacturing  and  advertising 
departments.  Tliese  conditions,  however,  if  they 
exist  at  all,  will  be  found  in  the  smaller  houses,  or  in 
houses  which,  as  to  personnel,  are  undergoing  reor- 
ganization ;  they  are,  and  ought  to  be,  exceptional. 

The  adviser's  actual  duties  should  pertain  al- 
most exclusively  to  the  manuscripts,  and  to  the 
relations  of  the  house  with  those  who  produce 
them.  In  this  way,  the  adviser  acts  as  an  inter- 
mediary between  the  publisher  and  the  author. 
This  relation  seems,  on  the  surface,  to  be  some- 
what delicate,  and  it  usually  is  confidential,  but 
most  men  find  the  occupation  an  agreeable  one. 
Authors  as  a  class,  so  far  from  being  an  irritable 
race,  will  usually  be  found,  at  least  in  their  relations 

16 


THE  LITERARY   ADVISER 

to  publishers,  not  only  interesting  men  and  women, 
but  candid  and  reasonable  human  beings.  Prob- 
ably the  most  delightful  rewards  of  the  literary 
adviser's  calUng  come  from  the  opportimities  it 
gives  him  to  extend  his  friendships  among  charm- 
ing people. 

Any  house  which  is  large  enough  to  employ  a 
literary  adviser  will  probably  receive,  in  the  course 
of  a  year,  at  least  one  thousand  unsolicited  manu- 
scripts, which  will  come  from  every  part  of  the 
country.  They  will  naturally  be  of  widely  vary- 
ing degrees  of  excellence;  quite  two-thirds  of 
them  will  be  fiction,  and  a  considerable  number 
will  bear  convincing  evidence  of  having  already 
been  for  some  time  in  search  of  a  publisher.  Testi- 
mony from  various  houses  has  at  different  times 
been  given  as  to  the  percentage  of  volunteered 
manuscripts  which  eventually  find  acceptance. 
It  does  not  materially  vary,  being  from  one  to 
two  per  cent.  Some  years  ago,  in  order  to  test  this 
estimate,  I  went  carefully  over  the  unsoUcited 
manuscripts  which  had  reached  a  large  publish- 
ing house  during  a  period  of  several  months,  and 
found  tliat  exactly  one  and  one-half  per  cent  of 
them  had  been  published. 

Tliis  small  showing  should  not  imply  that  the  re- 
maining ninety-eight  or  ninety-niiio  per  cent  could 
in  fairness  be  called  worthless.  With  occasional 
exceptions,  rejected  manuscripts  have  been  pre- 
pared  with   considerable    intelligence;    knowledge 

17 


THE  BUILDING  OF  A  BOOK 

of  themes  is  shown  in  them;  there  is  some  real 
Uterary  skill  in  evidence,  and  particular  care  has 
been  taken  to  secm"e  legibiUty,  about  nine-tenths 
of  them  being  in  typewritten  form.  What  they 
lack  is  certain  other  quaUties  more  vital  in  the 
formation  of  a  judgment  as  to  their  availabihty. 
In  the  case  of  fiction,  they  lack  novelty  of  treat- 
ment, or  for  some  other  reason  fail  to  be  interest- 
ing, and  in  general  there  has  not  been  infused  into 
them  the  real  brpd'th  of  Hfe.  When  they  deal 
with  serious  sul^jects,  they  often  cover  ground 
which  has  b(?wi  better  covered  before,  or  they 
attempt  to  achieve  the  not-worth-while,  or  the 
impossible. 

There  is  always  a  small  number  of  manuscripts 
against  which  no  other  objection  can  be  raised 
than  that  it  would  be  impossible  to  secure  from 
the  pubUc  an  adequate  return  in  sales  for  the  ex- 
penditure necessary  in  the  manufacture  and  dis- 
tribution of  the  books.  One  of  the  pathetic  sides 
of  the  publishing  business  is  the  fact  that  manu- 
scripts of  this  kind  cannot  oftener,  in  this  day  and 
generation,  secure  the  amount  of  attention  they 
deserve  from  the  reading  pubHc.  Wlien  a  sale 
of  one  or  two  thousand  copies  would  be  necessary 
to  make  good  the  cost  of  pubUcation,  the  publisher 
is  confronted  with  the  fact  that  he  could  not 
secure  a  sale  exceeding  five  hundred.  Indeed, 
when  one  considers  the  almost  certain  fate  that 
awaits  them,  pathos  of  the  most  genuine  kind  is 

18 


THE  LITERARY  ADVISER 

closely  associated  with  volunteered  manuscripts 
—  those,  I  mean,  which  come  from  new  writers. 
Hardly  any  form  of  endeavor  to  which  educated 
minds  devote  themselves  should  more  often 
awaken  sympathetic  feehng.  Those  who  produce 
them  almost  always  have  their  rewards  far  to 
seek,  and  seeking  will  not  find  them,  and  yet  they 
"\\Tought  in  sad  sincerity." 

The  public  is  famiUar  with  stories  of  successful 
books  which,  in  the  course  of  their  peregrinations, 
were  several  times  rejected  by  pubHshers.  This, 
doubtless,  has  been  the  experience  of  all  authors 
who  have  made  notable  successes  with  first  books, 
and  it  doubtless  always  will  be  the  experience  of 
new  authors.  But  along  with  this  we  must  set 
down  the  further,  but  consohng  fact,  that  prob- 
ably no  meritorious  manuscript,  possessing  the 
possibilities  of  a  great  sale,  ever  yet  failed  ulti- 
mately to  find  a  pubhsher.  The  best  proof  of 
this  seems  to  be  the  absence  of  any  notable  instance 
of  a  book  which,  after  being  rejected  by  all  the 
regular  houses,  finally  was  brought  out  privately, 
or  at  the  author's  expense,  and  then  made  a  hit. 

It  is  a  common  impression  that  manuscripts 
are  not  carefully  read  in  publishing  houses.  Again 
and  again  has  this  fiction  been  exploded  by  houses 
whose  word  should  be  accepted  as  final,  but  it 
now  and  then  lifts  up  its  head  as  if  untouched 
before.  Of  course  there  are  manuscripts  which 
no  one  ever  reads  completely  through  from  bc- 

19 


THE  BUILDING  OF  A  BOOK 

ginning  to  end,  chapter  by  chapter,  and  page  by 
page,  simply  because  it  has  been  found  not  to  be 
necessary  to  do  so.  Every  conscientious  reader, 
however,  —  and  most  readers  known  to  me  have 
been  nothing  if  not  conscientious,  —  reads  at  least 
far  enough  into  a  manuscript  to  learn  if  there  be 
anything  in  it  that  in  the  least  degree  is  promising. 
He  understands  full  well  the  danger  of  overlook- 
ing a  meritorious  work,  and  experience  has  taught 
him  to  be  careful.  Moreover,  he  is  usually  fired 
with  the  worthy  ambition  to  make  a  discovery; 
but  he  acts  according  to  his  light  only,  and  hence 
makes  mistakes.  The  conditions  in  which  his 
work  is  done,  however,  preclude  the  possibility 
of  careless  reading. 

It  is  doubtless  true  —  indeed,  I  believe  the 
records  of  every  pubHshing  house  in  the  country 
will  sustain  this  statement  —  that  while  no  house 
has  failed  at  some  time  in  its  career  to  reject  at 
least  one  manuscript  that  was  afterwards  a 
highly  successful  book,  mistakes  of  this  kind  have 
been  extremely  few;  whereas  the  mistakes  made 
by  the  same  houses  in  accepting  manuscripts 
that  were  afterward  found  to  be  unprofitable 
have  been  numerous.  A  further  fact,  which  is 
seldom  borne  in  mind,  although  it  ought  always 
to  be  remembered  in  any  discussion  of  literary 
success,  is  that  highly  successful  books  usually 
bring  to  their  publishers  as  much  surprise  as  they 
do  to  any  one  else.     This  is  distinctly  true  of 

20 


THE  LITERARY   ADVISER 

novels  by  new  writers,  whose  ''big-sellers"  have 
seldom  or  never  been  anticipated.  It  is  well  known 
in  the  trade  that  at  least  two,  and  probably  a  half- 
dozen,  books  highly  successful  duiing  the  past  ten 
years,  and  all  the  works  of  new  writers,  were  sent 
to  press  for  the  first  edition,  with  a  printing  order 
for  only  two  thousand  copies. 

The  public  has  gotten  very  much  into  the  habit 
of  judging  the  fortunes  of  a  pubhshing  house 
by  the  successful  fiction  which  it  puts  forth,  and 
this  is  also  true  of  many  men  in  the  trade,  whose 
means  of  knowing  better  ought  to  be  ample. 
Probably  the  literary  gossip  prevalent  in  news- 
papers and  periodicals  is  largely  responsible  for 
this  habit.  The  facts  are,  however,  that,  from 
these  books  alone,  no  publishing  house  in  this 
country  is,  or  could  be,  well  sustained.  Unless 
there  be  in  the  background  some  other  publishing 
enterprise  that  is  producing  constant  revenue 
from  year  to  year,  mere  fiction  will  accomplish 
little  to  make  or  save  the  publisher.  The  real 
sources  of  stability  lie  elsewhere,  far  beyond  the 
ken  of  the  superficial  observer,  and  they  are  very 
commonly  overlooked.  In  one  instance,  this 
mainstay  is  religious  books;  in  another  a  cyclo- 
paedia; in  another  medical  books,  or  educational; 
in  another  a  dictionary;  in  another  a  periodical; 
and  fortunate  the  house  that  has  not  one,  but 
two  or  three,  such  sources  of  prosperity. 

It  might  be  set  down  as  an  axiomatic  statement 
21 


THE  BUILDING  OF  A  BOOK 

that  no  large  publishing  house  in  this  country  could 
possibly  live  exclusively  from  what  are  known  as 
miscellaneous  books,  by  which  is  meant  current 
fiction  and  other  ephemeral  publications.  The 
worst  thing  about  such  books  is  that  they  create 
no  assets;  their  life  is  short,  and  once  it  is  ended, 
the  plates  have  value  only  as  old  metal.  A  house, 
therefore,  in  publishing  this  class  of  books  finds  that 
each  season  it  must  begin  all  over  again  the  work 
of  creating  business  for  itself.  Books  of  the  more 
substantial  kind,  however,  whether  they  be  reli- 
gious, educational,  scientific,  medical,  or  in  other 
senses  books  of  reference,  do  not  perish  with  the 
passing  of  a  season.  Once  the  right  kinds  have 
been  found,  they  are  good  for  at  least  ten  years, 
and  not  infrequently  for  a  generation. 

But  tliis  is  wandering  somewhat  away  from  the 
subject  of  the  literary  adviser.  His  duties  pri- 
marily are  to  preserve  and  to  create  good-will  from 
authors  toward  the  house  which  employs  him, 
for  that  good-will  is  an  asset  of  the  first  importance 
to  a  publishing  house.  Other  kinds  of  good-will 
at  the  same  time  are  essential  to  its  fortunes, — 
notably  the  good-will  of  the  bookseller  and  that 
of  the  book  buyer,  —  but  behind  these,  and  pri- 
marily as  the  source  of  these,  lies  the  good-will  of 
the  author.  Houses  now  known  to  be  the  most 
prosperous  in  this  country  possess  this  good-will 
in  abundance.  So,  too,  the  houses  which  are 
destined  to  much  longer  Ufe  are  those  which, 
22 


THE  LITERARY  ADVISER 

by  all  legitimate  means,  shall  seek  to  preserve 
and  increase  that  good- will.  Equally  true  is  it, 
that  the  houses  which  in  future  shall  fail  will  be 
those  which  do  not  cultivate  and  cherish  the 
good-will  of  authors  as  the  most  valuable  asset 
they  can  ever  hope  to  possess. 

It  is  because  of  this  possession  that  a  pubUsher 
gets  an  author's  book.  It  was  by  this  means  that 
he  got  the  books  he  already  has,  and  by  this  will 
he  get  those  which  will  make  him  successful  in 
the  future.  His  books  being  good,  it  is  through 
them  that  the  bookseller's  good-will  is  acquired, 
and  tlirough  them  also  that  the  pubUsher  will 
secure  the  good-will  of  the  book  buyer.  No  wiser 
words  on  this  subject  have  been  uttered  in  our 
generation  than  those  which  may  be  found,  here 
and  there,  in  ''A  Publisher's  Confession,"  which 
I  hope  was  written,  as  reputed,  by  Walter  H.  Page, 
for  it  is  certainly  sound  enough  and  sane  enough 
to  be  his :  — 


"  The  successful  publisher  sustains  a  relation  to  the  suc- 
cessful author  that  is  not  easily  transferable.  It  is  a  per- 
sonal relation.  A  great  corporation  cannot  take  a  real 
publisher's  place  in  his  attitude  t<j  the  author  he  serves." 

"  Kvfry  pn-at  publishing  house  has  been  built  on  the 
strong  friendships  between  writers  and  publishers.  There 
is  in  fact,  no  other  sound  basis  to  build  on;  for  the  pul)- 
lisher  cannot  do  his  highest  duty  to  any  author  whose  work 
he  does  not  appreciate  and  with  whom  he  is  not  in  sym- 
pathy. Now,  when  a  man  has  an  appreciation  of  your  work, 
and  .sympathy  for  it,  he  wins  you.     'J'his  is  the  simi)lest  of 

23 


THE  BUILDING  OF  A  BOOK 

all  psychological  laws,  —  the  simplest  of  all  laws  of  friend- 
ship, and  one  of  the  soundest." 

"  Mere  printers  and  salesmen  have  not  often  built  pub- 
lishing houses.  For  publishing  houses  have  this  distinction 
over  most  other  commercial  institutions  —  they  rest  on  the 
friendship  of  the  most  interesting  persons  in  the  world,  the 
writers  of  good  books." 

"And  —  in  all  the  noisy  babble  of  commercialism  —  the 
writers  of  our  own  generation  who  are  worth  most  on  a  pub- 
lisher's list  respond  to  the  true  publishing  personality  as 
readily  as  writers  did  before  the  day  of  commercial  methods. 
All  the  changes  that  have  come  into  the  profession  have  not, 
after  all,  changed  its  real  character,  as  it  is  practised  on  its 
higher  levels.  And  this  rule  will  hold  true  —  that  no  pub- 
lishing house  can  win  and  keep  a  place  on  the  highest  level 
that  does  not  have  at  least  one  man  who  possesses  this  true 
publishing  personality." 

These  are  golden  words.  Men  who  knew  them 
as  self-evident  truths  laid  the  foundations,  and  in 
a  few  instances  reared  the  superstructures,  of  the 
most  famous  pubhshing  houses  known  to  modern 
literature.  Let  us  in  part  call  the  roll,  restricting 
it  to  the  dead:  James  T.  Fields,  the  first  Charles 
Scribner,  George  P.  Putnam,  Fletcher  Harper, 
William  H.  Appleton,  Daniel  Macmillan,  and  the 
second  John  Murray.  These  men  were  more  than 
publishers,  adding  as  they  did  to  that  vocation 
the  duties  of  the  literary  adviser,  and  becoming 
the  ablest  of  their  kind.  Well  may  the  literary 
adviser  of  our  day,  who  is  seldom  himself  a  pub- 
lisher, read  the  story  of  their  lives  and  take  heart 
from  it  in  the  discharge  of  his  own  duties. 


24 


THE  MANUFACTURING   DEPARTMENT 
By  Lawton  L.  Walton 

The  manufacture  of  a  book  consists  primarily  of 
the  processes  of  typography/  or  type  composition, 
or  the  setting  up  of  type  —  presswork  or  printing 
—  photo-engraving  or  other  methods  of  repro- 
duction —  designing  —  die-cutting  —  and  binding, 
all  of  which  are  involved  in  transforming  a  manu- 
script into  the  completed  book  as  it  reaches  the 
reader. 

In  the  machinery  of  a  modern  publishing  house 
the  manufacturing  man  is  the  person  who  follows 
these  processes  in  their  devious  volutions  and 
evolutions,  until  the  finished  production  comes 
from  the  binder's  hands. 

After  a  manuscript  has  been  accepted  by  a  pub- 
lishing house,  it  is  turned  over  to  the  manufac- 
turing man  with  such  general  instructions  regard- 
ing the  make-up  of  the  book,  as  may  have  been 
considered  or  discussed  with  the  author,  who  in- 
variably and  sometimes  unfortunately,  has  some 

'  The  word  "  typographer  "  is  used  to  differentiate  be- 
tween the  compositor  and  the  printer,  the  latter  being  the 
one  who  does  the  presswork. 

25 


THE  BUILDING   OF  A  BOOK 

preconceived  notion  of  what  his  book  should  look 
like. 

The  manufacturing  man  then  selects  what  he 
considers  a  suitable  style  and  size  of  type  and  size 
of  letter-press  page  for  the  book,  and  sends  the 
manuscript  to  the  typographer  with  instructions 
to  set  up  a  few  sample  pages,  and  to  make  an  es- 
timate of  the  number  of  pages  that  the  book  will 
make,  so  as  to  verify  his  own  calculations  in  this 
respect. 

If  these  sample  pages  do  not  prove  satisfactory, 
others  are  set  up,  until  a  page  is  arrived  at  finally 
that  will  meet  all  the  requirements  that  the  pub- 
lisher deems  necessary.  This  is  then  invariably 
submitted  to  the  author  for  his  approval. 

This  detail  settled,  the  typographer  is  now  in- 
structed to  proceed  with  the  composition  and  to 
send  proofs  to  the  author.  Sometimes  a  book  is 
set  up  at  once  in  page  form  but  more  often  first 
proofs  are  sent  out  in  galley  strips,  on  which  the 
author  makes  his  corrections  before  the  matter 
is  apportioned  into  pages;  another  proof  in  page 
form  is  sent  to  the  author  on  the  return  of  which  the 
typographer  casts  the  electrotype  plates  from  which 
the  book  is  printed,  unless,  as  in  rare  instances,  the 
book  is  to  be  printed  from  the  type,  when  no  elec- 
trotype plates  are  made. 

The  manufacturing  man  keeps  in  touch  with  this 
work  in  its  various  stages  as  it  proceeds,  and  as 
soon  as  the  number  of  pages  that  the  book  will 

26 


THE  MANUFACTURING   DEPARTMENT 

make  can  definitely  be  determined,  he  places  an 
order  for  the  paper  on  which  it  is  to  be 
printed. 

Meanwhile,  if  the  book  is  to  be  illustrated,  an 
illustrator  must  be  engaged,  and  furnished  with  a 
set  of  early  proofs  of  the  book  from  which  to  select 
the  points  or  situations  to  illustrate.  When  the 
drawings  are  finally  approved  they  are  carefully 
looked  over,  marked  to  show  the  sizes  at  which 
they  are  to  be  reproduced,  and  sent  to  the  en- 
graver for  reproduction. 

Upon  receipt  of  the  reproductions  from  the  en- 
graver, the  proofs  are  carefully  compared  with 
the  originals,  and  if  the  work  has  been  satisfactorily 
performed,  the  cuts  are  sent  to  the  typogra]:)her  or 
the  printer  for  insertion  in  their  proper  places  in 
the  plates  or  type  matter  of  the  book. 

The  matter  of  the  paper  on  which  the  book  is 
to  be  printed  has  now  to  be  considered :  First,  the 
size  of  the  page,  i.e.  the  apportionment  of  the  mar- 
gins around  the  page  of  letter-press,  is  decided. 
Second,  the  (iualily  of  paper  to  be  used,  and  the 
surface  or  finish  is  then  selected;  and  finally,  the 
bulk  or  thickness  that  the  l)ook  must  be,  to  make 
a  volume  of  proper  proportions,  is  determined. 
Tlie  paper  is  then  ordered,  to  be  delivered  to  the 
printer  who  will  print  the  book. 

Time  was  when  paper  was  made  by  hand  in 
certain  fixed  sizes,  and  the  size  of  the  book  was 
determined  by  the  numix-r  of  times  the  sheet  of 

27 


THE  BUILDING  OF  A  BOOK 

paper  was  folded,  and  the  letter-press  page  was 
adapted  to  the  size  of  the  paper.  In  these  days  of 
machinery,  when  paper  can  be  made  in  any  size 
of  sheet  desired,  the  process  is  reversed:  the  size 
of  the  letter-press  page  is  determined  and  the 
size  of  the  sheet  of  paper  adapted  thereto.  Upon 
receipt  of  the  paper  the  printer  sends  a  full-sized 
dummy  of  it  to  the  manufacturing  man  so  that  he 
may  compare  it  with  the  order  that  was  given  to 
the  paper  dealer.  The  book  is  then  put  to  press, 
and  as  soon  as  the  printing  has  been  completed, 
the  printed  sheets  are  delivered  to  the  binder. 

If  the  book  is  to  have  a  decorative  cover,  a 
designer  has  been  employed  to  furnish  a  suitable 
cover  design.  Wlien  the  design  has  been  approved, 
it  is  turned  over  to  the  die  cutter  to  cut  the  brass 
dies  used  by  the  binder  in  stamping  the  design 
on  the  cover  of  the  book. 

The  cUes  when  finished  are  sent  with  the  design 
to  the  binder  to  be  copied.  He  stamps  off  some 
sample  covers  until  the  result  called  for  by  the 
designer  has  been  attained  and  is  then  ready  to 
proceed  with  the  operation  of  binding  the  book, 
as  soon  as  the  printed  sheets  have  been  delivered  to 
him  from  the  printer. 

The  binder  is  usually  supplied  by  the  printer  with 
a  small  number  of  advance  copies  of  the  book,  be- 
fore the  complete  run  of  the  sheets  has  been  de- 
livered. These  advance  copies  are  bound  up  at 
once  and  delivered  to  the  manufacturing  man  so 
28 


THE  MANUFACTURING   DEPARTMENT 

that  any  faults  or  errors  may  be  caught  and  im- 
provements be  made  before  the  entire  edition  of 
the  book  is  bound. 

Printed  paper  wrappers  for  the  book  have  been 
made  and  supplied  to  the  binder  for  wrapping  each 
copy,  and  as  soon  as  the  books  are  bound,  they 
are  wrapped  and  delivered  at  the  publisher's 
stock  rooms. 

The  manufacturing  man  sees  that  early  copies  of 
each  new  book,  for  copyright  purposes,  are  fur- 
nished to  the  proper  department  that  attends  to 
that  detail,  and  that  early  copies  also  are  supplied 
to  the  publicity  department,  to  place  with  editors 
for  special  or  advance  reviews. 

Tlie  manufacturing  man  also  provides  the  trav- 
elling representatives  of  his  house  with  adequate 
dummies  (i.e.  partly  completed  copies)  of  all  new 
books  as  soon  as  the  important  details  of  their 
make-up  have  been  decided. 

This  brief  outline  covers  all  of  the  steps  in  the 
process  of  the  evolution  of  a  book.  Reams,  how- 
ever, could  be  devoted  to  the  innumerable  details 
that  interweave  and  overlap  each  other  with  which 
the  manufacturing  man  has  to  contend,  when,  as 
is  often  the  case  in  our  larger  publishing  houses,  he 
has  from  forty  to  fifty  books,  and  sometimes  more, 
in  process  of  manufacture  at  one  time.  I  know  of 
no  man  to  whom  disai)pointment  comes  more  often 
than  to  him,  —  from  the  delays  due  to  causes 
wholly   unavoidable,   to   the   blunders  of  stupid 

*^9 


THE  BUILDING  OF  A  BOOK 

workmen  and  the  broken  promises  of  others; 
but  these  are  all  forgotten  when  the  completed 
book,  that  he  has  worried  over  in  its  course  through 
the  press,  in  many  instances  for  months,  reaches 
his  hands  completed,  "a  thing  of  beauty." 


30 


THE   MAKING   OF   TYPE 
By  L.  Boyd  Benton 

Type  are  made  of  type  metal,  a  mixture  of  tin, 
antimony,  lead,  and  copper.  As  antimony  ex- 
pands in  solidif}ing,  advantage  is  taken  of  this 
quality,  and  the  mixture  is  so  proportioned  that  the 
expansion  of  the  antimony  will  practically  counter- 
act the  shrinkage  of  the  other  ingredients.  The 
proportion  of  the  mixture  is  varied  according  to 
the  size  and  style  of  type  and  to  the  purposes  for 
which  it  is  used. 

Type  are  cast  separately  in  moulds,  a  "matrix" 
at  the  end  of  the  mould  forming  the  letter  or  other 
character. 

Machinery  is  used  very  largely  in  modern  type- 
making.  The  steps  of  its  manufacture  are  in  this 
order :  drawing  the  desfgn,  producing  of  a  metal 
pattern  therefrom,  placing  the  pattern  either  in 
the  engraving  machine  to  produce  steel  punches 
and  type-metal  originals,  or  in  the  matrix-engrav- 
ing machine  to  produce  matrices,  adjusting  the 
matrix  to  the  mould,  and  finally,  casting  the 
type. 

The  design  for  a  new  style  of  type  is  made  gen- 
31 


THE  BUILDING  OF  A  BOOK 

erally  with  pen  and  ink,  the  capital  letters  being 
drawn  about  an  inch  high  and  the  others  in  pre- 
determined proportions.  WTien  the  design  is 
for  a  plain  text  letter,  similar  to  that  with  which 
this  book  is  printed,  it  is  essential  to  have  the 
letters  proportioned  and  shaped  in  such  a  manner 
as  will  cause  the  least  strain  on  the  eye  in  reading, 
and,  at  the  same  time,  produce  a  pleasing  effect 
when  the  page  is  viewed  as  a  whole.  When  the 
printed  page  conveys  information  to  the  reader, 
without  attracting  attention  to  itself,  it  is  ideal. 

While  this  is  true  in  regard  to  a  design  for  a  text 
letter,  the  design  for  a  display  type  is  often  made 
to  attract  attention,  not  only  to  itself,  but  to  what 
it  proclaims,  by  its  boldness  and  beauty  and  some- 
times even  by  its  ugliness. 

After  the  design  has  been  drawn,  it  is  placed  in 
a  "delineating  machine,"  where  an  enlarged  out- 
line pencil  copy,  or  tracing,  is  made,  so  large  that 
all  errors  are  easily  seen  and  corrected.  New 
designs  may,  however,  be  drawn  in  outline  by  hand 
on  the  enlarged  scale,  thus  rendering  unnecessary 
both  the  pen-and-ink  drawing  and  the  tracing. 

With  the  aid  of  the  delineating  machine,  the 
operator,  besides  being  able  to  produce  an  accurately 
enlarged  outline  pencil  tracing  of  a  design,  is  also 
enabled,  by  various  adjustments,  to  change  the 
form  of  the  pencil  tracing  in  such  a  manner  that 
it  becomes  proportionately  more  condensed  or  ex- 
tended, and  even  italicized  or  back-sloped.    That 

32 


THE  MAKING  OF  TYPE 

is,  from  a  single  design,  say  Gothic,  pencil  tracings 
can  be  made  condensed,  extended,  italicized,  and 
back-sloped,  as  well  as  an  enlarged  facsimile. 

The  next  operation  consists  in  placing  the 
enlarged  outline  pencil  drawing  in  a  machine 
which  enables  the  operator  to  reproduce  the  out- 
line drawing,  reduced  in  size,  on  a  metal  plate, 
evenly  covered  with  wax,  with  the  Une  traced 
entirely  through  the  wax.  The  plate  is  then  cov- 
ered with  a  thin  layer  of  copper,  electrically  de- 
posited, and  is  "backed  up"  with  metal,  and 
trimmed  and  finished,  similar  to  an  ordinary 
electrotype  plate  of  a  page  of  type.  A  copper- 
faced  metal  plate  is  thus  produced,  on  which  are 
the  raised  outUnes  of  a  letter.  This  is  called  the 
"pattern."  From  this  pattern  all  regular  type 
sizes  may  be  cut.  It  determines  the  shape  of  the 
letter,  but  the  size  and  variations  from  the  pattern 
are  determined  later  by  the  adjustments  of  the 
engraving  machine  in  which  it  is  used. 

The  pattern  is  now  sent  to  the  engraving  room. 
Machines  have  superseded  the  old-fashioned  way 
of  cutting  punches  and  originals  by  hand,  and  they 
have  enormously  increased  the  production  of  new 
type  faces.  Whereas  in  the  old  days  it  took  about 
eighteen  months  to  bring  out  a  new  Roman  face, 
or  style  of  letters,  in  seven  different  sizes,  to-day 
it  can  be  done  in  about  five  weeks.  The  reason 
is  that  formerly  only  one  artist,  known  as  a  punch- 
cutter,  could  work  on  a  single  face,  and  he  had  to 
33 


THE  BUILDING  OF  A  BOOK 

cut  all  the  sizes,  otherwise  there  were  noticeable 
differences  in  style.  By  machine  methods,  where 
all  sizes  can  be  cut  simultaneously,  it  is  only  a 
question  of  having  the  requisite  number  of  en- 
graving machines. 

As  to  the  quality  of  machine  work,  it  is  superior 
to  hand  work  both  in  accuracy  and  uniformity. 
The  artist  formerly  cut  the  punches,  or  originals, 
by  hand  under  a  magnifying  glass,  and  the  excel- 
lence of  his  work  was  really  marvellous.  However, 
when  changing  from  one  size  to  another,  there 
were  often  perceptible  variations  in  the  shapes 
of  the  letters,  or  the  sizes  were  not  always  evenly 
graded.  By  the  machine  method  the  workman 
uses  the  long  end  of  a  lever,  as  explained  below, 
and  has  therefore  a  greater  chance  of  doing  accu- 
rate work.  In  addition  to  this,  a  rigid  pattern 
forms  the  shape  of  the  letter,  and  to  it  all  sizes 
must  conform. 

Another  gain  the  machine  has  over  hand-cutting 
is  its  greater  range.  When  the  old-time  artist 
made  an  unusually  small  size  of  type  for  Bible 
use,  he  did  it  with  great  strain  on  his  eyes  and 
nerves.  At  any  moment  his  tool  might  slip  and 
spoil  the  work.  With  the  machine,  on  the  other 
hand,  and  with  no  physical  strain  whatever, 
experimental  punches  have  been  cut  so  small  as 
to  be  legible  only  with  a  microscope  —  too  small, 
in  fact,  to  print.  At  present  there  are  two  styles 
of  engraving  machines  employed,  —  one  cutting 

34 


THE  MAKING   OF  TYPE 

the  letter  in  relief,  — called  a  "punch"  if  cut  in 
steel,  and  an  "original"  if  cut  in  type  metal, — 
and  the  other  cutting  a  letter  in  intaglio, —  called 
a  "matrix."  Both  machines  are  constructed  on 
the  principle  of  the  lever,  the  long  arm  follo^^ing 
the  pattern,  while  the  short  arm  moves  either 
the  work  against  the  cutting  tool,  or  the  cutting 
tool  against  the  work.  The  adjustments  are  such 
that  the  operator  is  enabled  to  engrave  the  letter 
proportionately  more  extended  or  condensed,  and 
lighter  or  heavier  in  face,  than  the  pattern.  All 
these  variations  are  necessary  for  the  production 
of  a  properly  graded  modern  series  containing 
the  UvSual  sizes.  In  fact,  on  account  of  the  laws 
of  optics,  which  cannot  be  gone  into  here,  only 
one  size  of  a  series  is  cut  in  absolutely  exact  pro- 
portion to  the  patterns. 

As  it  is  impossible  to  describe  these  machines 
clearly  without  the  aid  of  many  diagrams  and  much 
technical  language,  only  a  brief  description  of 
their  operation  will  be  given. 

When  tlu!  letters  are  to  be  engraved  in  steel, 
blocks  or  "blanks"  are  cut  from  Koft  steel  and 
finished  to  the  proper  size.  A  })lank  is  then  fas- 
tened in  the  "holder,"  the  machine  for  cutting 
the  letter  in  relief  adjusted  to  the  proper  leverage, 
and  the  pattern  clamped  to  the  "bed."  The  long 
arm  of  the  lever,  containing  tiie  proper  "tracer" 
or  follower,  is  moved  by  the  operator  around  the 
outside  of  the  pattern  on  the  copper-faced  metal 

•.v> 


THE  BUILDING  OF  A  BOOK 

plate,  causing  the  blank  to  be  moved  by  the  shorter 
arm  around  and  against  a  rotating  cutting  tool. 
This  operation  is  repeated  several  times  with  differ- 
ent sizes  of  tracers  and  different  adjustments 
to  enable  the  cutting  tool  to  cut  at  different 
depths,  until  finally  a  steel  letter  in  relief  is 
produced,  engraved  the  reverse  of  the  pattern 
and  very  much  smaller.  After  being  hardened 
and  poUshed,  this  is  called  a  steel  punch,  and, 
when  driven  into  a  flat  piece  of  copper,  it  produces 
what  is  known  as  a  "strike"  or  unfinished  matrix. 

If  in  the  same  machine  type  metal  is  used  for 
blanks,  the  resulting  originals  are  placed  in  a 
"flask,"  or  holder,  and  submerged  in  a  bath,  where 
they  receive  on  the  face  of  the  letter  a  thick 
coating  of  nickel,  electrically  deposited.  As  soon 
as  the  deposit  is  of  sufficient  thickness,  they  are 
removed  and  the  soft  metal  letters  withdrawn, 
leaving  a  deep  facsimile  impression  in  the  depos- 
ited metal,  which  also  is  an  unfinished  matrix. 

The  machine  for  engraving  a  matrix  in  intaglio 
is  operated  in  much  the  same  manner  as  that  for 
engraving  a  punch  in  rehef.  The  same  patterns 
are  used,  but  the  operator  traces  on  the  inside  of 
the  raised  outline  instead  of  on  the  outside.  Be- 
sides following  the  outline,  the  operator  guides 
the  tracers  over  all  the  surface  of  the  pattern 
within  the  outlines;  otherwise  the  letter  would 
appear  in  the  matrix  in  outhne  only.  The  ma- 
trices are  cut  in  steel  and  in  watchmakers'  nickel, 

36 


THE  MAKING   OF  TYPE 

and  the  work  is  so  accurately  done  that  about 
half  the  labor  of  finishing  is  saved. 

It  vnll  be  noted  from  the  foregoing  that  all 
three  processes  of  engraving  end  in  the  production 
of  an  unfinished  matrix. 

Tlie  adjusting  of  the  matrix  to  the  mould  is 
technically  called  ''fitting,"  and  requires  great 
skill.  If  type  are  cast  from  unfitted  matrices, 
be  the  letters  ever  so  cleverly  designed  and  per- 
fectly cut,  when  assembled  in  the  printed  page 
they  will  present  a  very  ragged  appearance.  Some 
letters  will  appear  slanting  backward,  others 
forward,  some  be  above  the  hne,  others  below; 
some  will  perforate  the  paper,  while  others  will 
not  print  at  all;  the  distances  between  the  letters 
will  everywhere  be  unequal,  and  some  will  print 
on  but  one  edge.  Indeed,  a  single  letter  may 
have  half  of  these  faults,  but  when  the  matrices 
are  properly  fitted,  the  printed  page  presents  a 
smooth  and  even  appearance. 

The  mould  for  this  purpose  is  made  of  hardened 
steel,  and  in  it  is  formed  the  body  of  the  type. 
The  printing  end  is  formed  in  the  matrix.  The 
mould  is  provitled  at  one  end  with  guides  and 
devices  for  holding  the  matrix  snugly  against  it 
while  the  type  is  being  cast,  and  for  withdrawing 
the  matrix  and  opening  the  mould  when  the  type 
is  discharged.  At  the  opposite  end  from  the 
matrix  is  an  opening  through  which  the  melted 
nietal  enters.     The  moulds  are  made   adjustable 

37 


THE  BUILDING  OF  A  BOOK 

so  that  each  character  is  cast  the  proper  width, 
the  opening  of  course  being  wider  for  a  "W" 
than  for  an  "i."  Only  one  mould  is  necessary 
for  one  size  of  type,  and  with  it  all  the  matrices 
for  that  size  may  be  used.  Commercially,  how- 
ever, it  is  often  necessary  to  make  several  moulds 
of  the  same  size  in  order  to  produce  the  requisite 
amount  of  type. 

After  the  adjustments  are  made,  the  casting  of 
the  type  follows.  Type  are  now  cast  in  a  machine 
which  is  automatic,  after  it  is  once  adjusted  to  cast 
a  given  letter.  The  melted  type  metal  is  forced 
by  a  pump  into  the  mould  and  the  matrix,  and 
when  solidified,  the  type  is  ejected  from  the 
mould  and  moved  between  knives  which  trim  all 
four  sides.  The  type  are  delivered  side  by  side  on 
a  specially  grooved  piece  of  wood,  three  feet  long, 
called  a  "stick,"  on  which  they  are  removed  from 
the  machine  for  inspection.  Type  are  cast  at  the 
rate  of  from  ten  to  two  hundred  per  minute,  ac- 
cording to  the  size,  the  speed  being  hmited  only 
by  the  time  it  takes  the  metal  to  solidify.  To 
accelerate  this,  a  stream  of  cold  water  is  forced 
through  passages  surrounding  the  mould,  and  a 
jet  of  cold  air  is  blown  against  the  outside. 

The  automatic  casting  machine  performs  six 
different  operations.  Formerly,  all  of  them,  ex- 
cept the  casting  itself,  were  done  by  hand,  and  each 
type  was  handled  separately,  except  in  the  opera- 
tion   of    dressing,  or    the    final    finishing,  where 

38 


THE  MAKING  OF  TYPE 

they  were  handled  in  lines  of  about  three  feet  in 
length. 

After  the  type  have  been  delivered  to  the  in- 
spector, they  are  examined  under  a  magnifying 
glass  and  all  imperfect  type  are  thrown  out.  The 
perfect  type  are  then  dehvered  to  "fonting"  room, 
where  they  are  weighed,  counted,  and  put  up  in 
suitable  packages  in  proper  proportion  of  one 
letter  with  another,  ready  for  the  printer. 

Formerly  the  various  sizes  of  type  were  indi- 
cated by  names  which  had  developed  with  the 
history  of  type  making.  It  was  a  source  of  con- 
siderable annoyance  to  printers  that  these  old 
standards  were  not  accurate,  and  that  two  types 
of  supposedly  the  same  size,  and  sold  under  the 
same  name,  by  different  makers,  varied  so  much 
that  they  could  not  be  used  side  by  side.  Of 
recent  years  the  "  point  "  system,  by  which  each 
size  bears  a  proportionate  relation  to  every  other 
size,  has  done  much  to  remedy  this  trouble,  and 
now  nearly  all  type  is  made  on  that  basis.  An 
American  point  is  practically  one  seventy-second 
of  an  inch.  Actually  it  is  .013837  inch.  It  was 
based  on  the  pica  size  most  cxtcn.sively  in  use 
in  this  country.  This  pica  was  divided  into 
twelve  equal  parts  and  each  part  called  a  point. 
All  the  other  sizes  were  made  to  conform  to 
multiples  of  this  point.  The  point  is  so  near  a 
seventy-second  of  an  inch  that  jirintcrs  frequently 
calculate  the  length  of  the  pages  by  counting 
39 


THE   BUILDING   OF  A  BOOK 

the  lines,  the  basis  being  twelve  lines  of  G  point, 
nine  lines  of  8  point,  eight  lines  of  9  point,  and 
six  hnes  of  12  point  to  the  inch.  This  calcula- 
tion is  really  quite  accurate. 

The  following  table  will  show  the  old  and  new 
names  for  the  various  sizes :  — 


3J  Point, 

4^ 

Point, 

5 

Point, 

5^ 

Point, 

6 

Point, 

7 

Point, 

8 

Point, 

9 

Point, 

10 

Point, 

11 

Point, 

12 

Point, 

14 

Point, 

16 

Point, 

18 

Point, 

20 

Point, 

22 

Point, 

24 

Point, 

28 

Point, 

30 

Point, 

32 

Point, 

36 

Point, 

40 

Point, 

42 

Point, 

44 

Point, 

48 

Point, 

.54 

Point, 

60 

Point, 

72 

Point, 

Brilliant. 

Diamond. 

Pearl. 

Agate. 

Nonpareil. 

Minion. 

Brevier. 

Bourgeois. 

Long  Primer. 

Small  Pica. 

Pica. 

2-line  Minion  or  English. 

2-line  Brevier. 

Great  Primer. 

2-line  Long  Primer  or  Paragon. 

2-line  Small  Pica. 

2-line  Pica. 

2-line  English. 

5-line  Nonpareil. 

4-line  Brevier. 

2-line,  Great  Primer. 

Double  Paragon. 

7-line  Nonpareil. 

4-line  Small  Pica  or  Canon. 

4-line  Pica. 

9-line  Nonpareil. 

5-line  Pica. 

6-line  Pica. 


40 


HAND  COMPOSITION  AND  ELECTROTYPING 

By  J.  Steakxs  Cusiiing 

The  form  of  the  book,  the  size  of  the  type  page, 
and  the  size  and  style  of  the  type  having  been  de- 
termined, the  manuscript  is  handed  to  the  fore- 
man of  the  composing  room,  with  all  the  collected 
directions  in  regard  to  it.  He  fills  out  a  scheme  of 
the  work  which  tells  the  whole  story,  —  somewhat 
as  shown  in  illustration  opposite  page  42. 

Under  the  heading  "Remarks,"  in  the  scheme 
shown,  are  noted  general  directions  as  to  capitali- 
zation, punctuation,  and  spelling  (whether  Web- 
ster, Worcester,  or  English  spelling  —  which  means 
generally  not  much  more  than  the  insertion  of  the 
"u"  in  words  like  "favor,"  "honor,"  etc.,  and  the 
use  of  "s"  instead  of  "z"  in  words  Uke  "recog- 
nize," "authorize,"  etc.).  Sometimes  these  direc- 
tions are  given  by  tiio  publishor,  soiiir'tiines  by  the 
author,  but  more  often  by  the  superintendent  or 
foreman  of  the  printing-office.  The  office  gener- 
ally has  a  fairly  well  fslablished  system,  which  is 
followed  in  the  absence  of  other  orders.  It  is 
rarely  the  case  that  it  is  not  the  wisest  course,  if 
41 


THE  BUILDING  OF  A  BOOK 

one  is  dealing  with  a  reputable  firm  of  printers,  to 
leave  all  such  details,  except  deciding  the  diction- 
ary to  be  followed,  to  them.  It  is  their  business, 
and  they  will,  if  allowed,  pursue  a  consistent  and 
uniform  plan,  whereas  few  authors  and  fewer  pub- 
hshers  are  able,  or  take  the  pains,  to  do  this.  Too 
often  the  author  has  a  few  pecuUar  ideas  as  to 
punctuation  or  capitaHzation,  which  he  introduces 
just  frequently  enough  to  upset  the  consistent  plan 
of  the  printer.  He  will  neither  leave  the  respon- 
sibiUty  to  the  latter  nor  will  he  assume  it  himself, 
and  the  natural  result  is  a  lack  of  uniformity  which 
might  have  been  avoided  if  the  printer  had  been 
allowed  to  guide  this  part  of  the  work  without  in- 
terference. 

The  compositors  who  are  to  set  the  type  are 
selected  according  to  the  difficulty  of  the  matter 
in  hand,  and  each  one  is  given  a  few  pages  of  the 
"copy,"  or  manuscript.  The  portion  thus  given 
each  compositor  is  called  a  "take,"  and  its  length 
is  determined  by  circumstances.  For  instance,  if 
time  is  an  object,  small  takes  are  given,  in  order 
that  the  next  step  in  the  forwarding  of  the  work 
may  be  started  promptly  and  without  the  delay 
which  would  be  occasioned  by  waiting  for  the  com- 
positor to  set  up  a  longer  take. 

When  the  compositor  has  finished  his  take,  the 

copy  and  type  are  passed  to  a  boy,  who  "locks 

up"  the  type  on  the  galley  —  a  flat  brass  tray  with 

upright  sides  on  which  the  compositor  has  placed 

43 


MEMORANDUM    No.    IMiSo 


:  of  Book 


O^  S^JuJUuCu-^  trt-^L-y^-a-^-K 


.Vanve  and  Address  of  Author 


nd  Address  of  PtMishrr      t;?Vy-^t.«.^V^^e-<»-g^ 


c?%    Su^^^-I^    G^SUi^ 


Vniform  with '         "  '        "  ■  .,  "^T 

Size  nfPnj,.  t5/fA      >     «tr/?-      w^C,^6z-<y 

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Text  //  ^iKJuJf~  '^3/ leaded  with /  2-  «S 

Poot-notet  in         O    P-0-c*£^        37  leaded  orith.         / Z.  ■* 

SxtraeU  in ^^/?I>\U^ 3£ Uaded  wUh ^2.^ 

diher  Typ^.         '  -  . 

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Left-hand  Running  TMe 

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vZZ^  ef  aA:^ic^ 


PROOFS  to  be  sent  at  foUoi 
let  Rev.  and  Copy  to 


id  Rev  and  Old  Rev.  to 


(Put  Changee  of  Order!  at  to  Proof) 
n  this  column.) 


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a:    &•  ^     rt 


HAND  COMPOSITION 

his  type  —  and  takes  a  proof  of  it  upon  a  galley- 
or  "roller "-press.  This  is  the  proof  known  as  a 
"galley-proof,"  and  is,  in  book  work,  printed  on  a 
strip  of  paper  about  7  x  25  inches  in  size,  leaving 
room  for  a  generous  margin  to  accommodate  proof- 
readers' and  authors'  corrections,  alterations,  or 
additions. 

The  galley-proof,  with  the  corresponding  copy,  is 
then  handed  to  the  proof-reader,  who  is  assisted  by 
a  "copy-holder"  (an  assistant  who  reads  the  copy 
aloud)  in  comparing  it  with  the  manuscript  and 
marking  typographical  errors  and  departures  from 
copy  on  its  margin.  Thence  the  proof  passes  back 
again  to  the  compositor,  who  corrects  the  type 
in  accordance  with  the  proof-reader's  markings. 
Opposite  page  44  is  a  specimen  of  a  page  proof 
before  correction  and  after  the  changes  indicated 
have  been  made. 

New  proofs  are  taken  of  the  corrected  galley, 
and  these  are  revised  by  a  proof-reader  in  order  to 
be  sure  that  the  compositor  has  made  all  the  cor- 
rections marked  and  to  mark  anew  any  he  may 
have  overlooked  or  wrongly  altered.  If  many  such 
occur,  the  proof  is  again  passed  to  the  compositor 
for  further  correction  and  the  taking  of  fresh  proofs. 
The  reviser  having  found  the  proof  reasonably  cor- 
rect, and  having  marked  on  its  margin  any  noticed 
errors  remaining,  unrl  also  having  "Queried"  to 
the  author  any  doubtful  points  to  which  it  is  de- 
sirable that  the  lattcr's  attention  should  be  drawn, 

43 


THE   BUILDING  OF  A  BOOK 

the  proof  —  known  as  the  "first  revise"  —  and 
the  manuscript  are  sent  to  the  author  for  his  read- 
ing and  correction  or  alteration/ 

On  the  return  of  the  galley-proofs  to  the  printer, 
the  changes  indicated  on  the  margins  are  made  by 
compositors  selected  for  the  purpose,  and  the  gal- 
leys of  type  and  the  proofs  are  then  turned  over  by 
them  to  the  "make-up."  The  "make-up"  inserts 
the  cuts,  divides  the  matter  into  page  lengths, 
and  adds  the  running  titles  and  folios  at  the 
heads  of  the  pages. 

At  this  stage  the  separate  types  composing  the 
page  are  held  in  place  and  together  by  strong  twine 
called  "page  cord,"  which  is  wound  around  the 
whole  page  several  times,  the  end  being  so  tucked 
in  at  the  corner  as  to  prevent  its  becoming  unfast- 
ened prematurely.  The  page  thus  held  together  is 
quite  secure  against  being  "pied"  if  proper  care  is 
exercised  in  handling  it,  and  it  can  be  put  on  a 


'  If  the  book  is  to  be  illustrated,  the  author  or  pub- 
lisher should  be  particular  to  indicate  the  position  of  all 
cuts  by  pasting  proofs  of  them  on  the  margin  of  the  galley- 
proofs  nearest  the  place  desired.  The  time  occupied  by  the 
"  make-up  "  in  "  overrunning  "  matter  for  the  insertion  of 
cuts  is  charged  as  "  author's  time,  "  and  they  can  be  inserted 
at  less  expense  in  the  galley-proofs  while  making-up  the 
type  into  pages  than  at  any  other  time.  All  alterations, 
so  far  as  practicable,  for  the  same  reason,  should  also  be 
made  in  the  galley-proofs,  especially  those  which  involve  an 
increase  or  decrease  in  the  amount  of  matter,  since  changes 
of  this  nature  made  in  the  page-proof  necessitate  the  added 
expense  of  a  rearrangement  of  the  made-up  pages  of  type. 

44 


HAND  COMPOSITION 

hand-press  and  excellent  proofs  readily  taken  from 
it.  A  loosely  tied  page,  however,  may  allow  the 
letters  to  spread  apart  at  the  ends  of  the  Hnes,  or 
the  type  to  get  ''off  its  feet,"  or  may  show  lines 
slightly  curved  or  letters  out  of  ahgnment.  The 
proof  of  a  page  displaying  such  conditions  often 
causes  the  author,  unlearned  in  printers'  methods, 
much  perturbation  of  mind  and  unnecessary  fear 
that  his  book  is  going  to  be  printed  with  these  de- 
fects. These  should  in  reality  be  no  cause  for 
worry,  since  by  a  later  operation,  that  of  "lock- 
ing-up"  the  "form"  in  which  the  pages  will  be 
placed  before  they  are  sent  to  the  electrotyping 
department,  the  types  readily  and  correctly  adjust 
themselves. 

Proofs  of  these  twine-bound  pages  are  taken  on 
a  hand-press,  passed  to  the  reviser  for  comparison 
with  the  galley-proofs  returned  by  the  author,  and 
if  the  latter  has  expressed  a  wish  to  see  a  second 
revise  of  the  proofs,  they  are  again  sent  to  him.  For 
such  a  "second  revise"  and  any  further  revises  an 
extra  charge  is  made.  The  proofs  to  which  an 
author  is  regularly  entitled  are  a  duplicate  set  of 
the  first  revise,  a  duplicate  set  of  "  F  "-proofs,  —  to 
be  mentioned  later,  —  and  one  set  of  proofs  of  the 
electrotype  plates;  though  it  may  be  added  that  the 
last  is  not  at  all  essential  and  is  seldom  called  for. 

Usually  the  author  does  not  require  to  see  an- 
other proof  after  the  second  revise,  which  he  re- 
turns to  the  printer  with  his  final  changes  and  the 

45 


THE  BUILDING  OF   A  BOOK 

direction  that  the  pages  may  be  "corrected  and 
cast,"  that  is,  put  into  the  permanent  form  of  elec- 
trotype plates.  Some  authors,  however,  will  ask 
to  see  and  will  make  alterations  in  revise  after  re- 
vise, even  to  the  sixth  or  seventh,  and  could  prob- 
ably find  something  to  change  in  several  more  if 
the  patience  or  pocketbook  of  the  publisher  would 
permit  it.  All  the  expense  of  overhauhng,  cor- 
recting, and  taking  additional  proofs  of  the  pages 
is  charged  by  the  printer  as  "author's  time."  It 
is  possible  for  an  author  to  make  comparatively 
few  and  simple  changes  each  time  he  receives  a  new 
revise,  but  yet  have  a  much  larger  bill  for  author's 
changes  than  another  who  makes  twice  or  thrice 
as  many  alterations  at  one  time  on  the  galley-proof, 
and  only  requires  another  proof  in  order  that  he 
may  verify  the  correctness  of  the  printer's  work. 
The  moral  is  obvious. 

After  the  pages  have  been  cast,  further  altera- 
tions, while  entirely  possible,  are  quite  expensive 
and  necessarily  more  or  less  injurious  to  the  plates. 

The  author  having  given  the  word  to  "cast,"  the 
pages  of  type  are  laid  on  a  smooth,  level  table  of 
iron  or  marble  called  an  "imposing  stone,"  They 
are  then  enclosed  —  either  two  or  three  or  four 
pages  together,  according  to  their  size  —  in  iron 
frames  called  "chases,"  in  which  they  are  squarely 
and  securely  "locked  up,"  the  type  having  first 
been  levelled  down  by  light  blows  of  a  mallet  on  a 
block  of  smooth,  hard  wood  called  a  "planer." 

46 


HAND  COMPOSITION 

This  locking-up  of  the  pages  in  iron  frames  natu- 
rally corrects  the  defects  noted  in  the  twine-bound 
pages,  and  not  only  brings  the  type  into  proper 
alignment  and  adjustment,  but  prevents  the  prob- 
ability of  types  becoming  displaced  or  new  errors 
occurring  through  types  dropping  out  of  the  page 
and  being  wrongly  replaced. 

"\\'hen  the  locking-up  process  is  completed,  the 
iron  chase  and  type  embraced  by  it  is  called  a 
"form."  A  proof  of  this  form  is  read  and  exam- 
ined by  a  proof-reader  with  the  utmost  care,  \\dth  a 
view  to  ehminating  any  remaining  errors  or  defec- 
tive types  or  badly  adjusted  lines,  and  to  making 
the  pages  as  nearly  typographically  perfect  as  pos- 
sible. It  is  surprising  how  many  glaring  errors, 
which  have  eluded  all  readers  up  to  this  time,  are 
discovered  by  the  practised  eye  of  the  final  proof- 
reader. 

The  form  having  received  this  most  careful  final 
reading,  the  proof  is  passed  back  to  the  "stone- 
hands"  —  those  who  lock  up  and  correct  the  forms 
—  for  final  correction  and  adjustment,  after  which 
several  more  sets  of  proofs  are  taken,  called  "F"- 
proofs  (variously  and  correctly  understood  as 
standing  for  "final,"  "file,"  or  "foundry"  proofs). 
A  set  of  F-proofs  is  sent  to  the  author  to  keep  on 
file,  occasionally  one  is  sent  to  the  publisher,  and 
one  set  is  always  retained  in  the  proof-room  of 
tho  printing-office.  These  proofs  are  characterized 
by  heavy  black  borders  which  enclose  each  page, 

47 


THE   BUILDING   OF  A   BOOK 

and  which  frequently  render  nervous  authors  ap- 
prehensive lest  their  books  are  to  appear  in  this 
funereal  livery.  These  black  borders  are  the 
prints  of  the  "guard-hnes,"  which,  rising  to  the 
level  of  the  type,  form  a  protection  to  the  pages 
and  the  plates  in  their  progress  through  the  elec- 
trotyping  department;  but  before  the  plates  are 
finished  up  and  made  ready  for  the  pressroom,  the 
guard-lines,  which  have  been  moulded  with  the 
type,  are  removed. 

After  several  sets  of  F-proofs  have  been  taken, 
the  form  is  carried  to  the  moulding  or  "battery" 
room  of  the  electrotyping  department,  where  it 
leaves  its  perfect  impress  in  the  receptive  wax. 
Thence  it  will  later  be  returned  to  the  composing 
room  and  taken  apart  and  the  type  distributed, 
soon  to  be  again  set  up  in  new  combinations  of 
letters  and  words.  The  little  types  making  a 
page  of  verse  to-day  may  do  duty  to-morrow  in 
a  page  of  a  text-book  in  the  higher  mathe- 
matics. 

After  the  type  form  has  been  warmed  by  placing 
it  upon  a  steam  table,  an  impression  of  it  is  taken 
in  a  composition  resembling  wax  which  is  spread 
upon  a  metal  slab  to  the  thickness  of  about  one- 
twelfth  of  an  inch.  Both  the  surface  of  the  type 
and  of  the  wax  are  thoroughly  coated  with  plum- 
bago or  black  lead,  which  serves  as  a  lubricant  to 
prevent  the  wax  from  adhering  to  the  type. 

As  the  blank  places  in  the  form  would  not  pro- 
48 


ELECTROTYPING 

vide  sufficient  depth  in  the  plate,  it  is  necessary 
to  build  them  up  in  the  wax  mould  by  dropping 
more  melted  wax  in  such  places  to  a  height  cor- 
responding to  the  depth  required  in  the  plate, 
which  is,  of  course,  the  reverse  of  the  mould,  and 
will  show  corresponding  depressions  wherever  the 
mould  has  raised  parts.  If  great  care  is  not  taken 
in  this  operation  of  ''building-up,"  wax  is  apt  to 
flow  over  into  depressions  in  the  mould,  thereby 
effacing  from  it  a  part  of  the  impression,  and  the 
plate  appears  later  without  the  letters  or  words 
thus  unintentionally  blotted  out.  The  reviser  of 
the  plate-proofs  nmst  watch  carefully  for  such  cases. 

The  mould  is  now  thoroughly  brushed  over 
again  with  a  better  quality  of  black  lead  than 
before,  and  this  furnishes  the  necessary  metallic 
surface  without  which  the  copper  would  not  de- 
posit. Then  it  is  "stopped  out"  by  going  over 
its  edges  with  a  hot  iron,  which  melts  the  wax, 
destroys  the  black-lead  coating,  and  confines  the 
deposit  of  copper  to  its  face. 

After  carefully  clearing  the  face  of  the  mould 
of  all  extraneous  matter  by  a  stream  of  water 
from  a  force-pump,  it  is  washed  with  a  solution  of 
iron  filings  and  })lue  vitriol  which  forms  a  primary 
copper  facing.  It  is  tlion  suspoiulod  by  a  copper- 
conn^'cting  strip  in  a  bath  containing  a  solution 
of  sulphate  of  copper,  water,  and  sulphuric  acid. 
Through  the  instruiTientality  of  this  solution,  and 
the  action  of  a  current  of  electricity  from  a  dynamo, 
40 


THE   BUILDING   OF   A   BOOK 

copper  particles  separate  from  sheets  of  copper 
(called  "anodes,"  which  are  also  suspended  in  the 
bath)  and  deposit  into  the  face  of  the  mould,  thus 
exactly  reproducing  the  elevations  and  depressions 
of  the  form  of  type  or  illustrations  of  which  the 
mould  is  an  impression.  After  remaining  in  the 
bath  about  two  hours,  when  the  deposit  of  copper 
should  be  about  as  thick  as  a  visiting  card,  the 
mould  is  taken  from  the  bath  and  the  copper  shell 
removed  from  the  wax  by  pouring  boiling  hot  water 
upon  it.  A  further  washing  in  hot  lye,  and  a  bath 
in  an  acid  pickle,  completely  removes  every  ves- 
tige of  wax  from  the  shell.  The  back  of  the  shell 
is  now  moistened  with  soldering  fluid  and  covered 
with  a  layer  of  tin-foil,  which  acts  as  a  solder 
between  the  copper  and  the  later  backing  of  lead. 

The  shells  are  now  placed  face  downward  in  a 
shallow  pan,  and  melted  lead  is  poured  upon  them 
until  of  a  sufficient  depth;  then  the  whole  mass 
is  cooled  off,  and  the  solid  lead  plate  with  copper 
face  is  removed  from  the  pan  and  carried  to  the 
finishing  room,  where  it  is  planed  down  to  a  stand- 
ard thickness  of  about  one-seventh  of  an  inch. 
The  various  pages  in  the  cast  are  sawed  apart, 
the  guard-lines  removed,  side  and  foot  edges  bev- 
elled, head  edge  trimmed  square,  and  the  open  or 
blank  parts  of  the  plate  lowered  by  a  routing 
machine  to  a  sufficient  depth  to  prevent  their 
showing  later  on  the  printed  sheet. 

Then  a  proof  taken  from  the  plates  is  carefully 
50 


ELECTROTYPING 

examined  for  imperfections,  and  the  plates  are 
corrected  or  repaired  accordingly,  and  are  now 
ready  for  the  press. 

Although,  owing  to  the  expense  and  to  the  fact 
that  the  plate  is  more  or  less  weakened  thereby,  it 
is  desirable  to  avoid  as  much  as  possible  making 
alterations  in  the  plates,  they  can  be  made,  and  the 
following  is  the  course  generally  pursued.  If  the 
change  involves  but  a  letter  or  two,  the  letters  in 
the  plate  are  cut  out  and  new  type  letters  are  in- 
serted ;  but  if  the  alteration  involves  a  whole  word 
or  more,  it  is  inadvisable  to  insert  the  lead  type, 
owing  to  its  being  softer  and  less  durable  than  the 
copper-faced  plate,  and  it  will  therefore  soon  show 
more  wear  than  the  rest  of  the  page;  and  so  it  is 
customary  to  reset  and  electrotype  so  much  of  the 
page  as  is  necessary  to  incorporate  the  proposed 
alteration,  and  then  to  substitute  this  part  of  the 
page  for  the  part  to  be  altered,  by  cutting  out  the 
old  and  soldering  in  the  new  piece,  which  must  of 
course  exactly  correspond  in  size. 

As  a  patched  plate  is  apt  at  any  time  to  go  to 
pieces  on  the  press,  and  may  destroy  other  plates 
around  it,  or  may  even  damage  the  press  itself,  it 
is  generally  con.sidered  best  to  cast  a  new  plate 
from  the  patched  one.  This  does  not,  however, 
ai)ply  to  plates  in  which  only  single  letters  or  words 
have  been  inserted,  but  to  those  which  have  been 
cut  apart  their  whole  widlli  for  the  insertion  of  one 
or  more  lines. 

51 


THE   BUILDING   OF   A   BOOK 

The  plates  having  been  finally  approved,  they 
are  made  up  in  groups  (or  ''signatures")  of  six- 
teen, and  packed  in  strong  boxes  for  future  storage. 
Each  box  generally  contains  three  of  these  groups, 
or  forty-eight  plates,  and  is  plainly  marked  with 
the  title  of  the  book  and  the  numbers  of  the  signa- 
tures contained  therein. 

The  longevity  of  good  electrotype  plates  is  de- 
pendent upon  the  care  with  which  they  are  handled 
and  the  quality  of  paper  printed  from  them;  but 
with  smooth  book  paper  and  good  treatment  it  is 
entirely  possible  to  print  from  them  a  half  million 
impressions  without  their  showing  any  great  or 
material  wear. 


52 


COMPOSITION  BY  THE  LINOTYPE  MACHINE 

By  Frederick  J.  Warburtox 

The  Linotype,  pronounced  by  London  En- 
gineering "the  most  wonderful  machine  of  the 
century,"  was  not  the  product  of  a  day.  Its 
creator,  whose  early  training  had  never  touched 
the  printer's  art,  was  fortunately  led  to  the  study 
of  that  art,  through  the  efforts  of  others,  whose 
education  hatl  prepared  them  to  look  for  a  better 
method  of  producing  print  than  that  which  had 
been  in  use  since  the  days  of  Gutenberg;  but 
his  invention  abolished  at  one  stroke  composition 
and  distribution;  introduced  for  the  first  time  the 
line,  instead  of  the  letter,  as  the  unit  of  composition ; 
brought  into  the  art  the  idea  of  automatically  and 
instantly  producing  by  a  keyboard  soUd  lines  of 
composed  and  justified  type,  to  be  once  used  and 
then  melted  down;  rendered  it  ])Ossil)]e  to  secure 
for  each  issue  new  and  sharp  faces;  abolished  the 
usual  investment  for  type;  clieaponed  the  cost  of 
standing  matter;  removed  all  danger  of  "pieing," 
and  at  the  same  time  reduced  greatly  the  cost  of 
composition.     The  story  is  an  interesting  one. 

53 


THE  BUILDING   OF  A  BOOK 

In  the  autumn  of  1876,  Charles  T.  Moore,  a 
native  of  Virginia,  exhibited  to  a  company  of 
Washington  reporters  a  printing  machine  upon 
which  he  had  been  working  for  many  years,  and 
which  he  beheved  to  be  then  substantially  com- 
plete. It  was  a  machine  of  very  moderate  dimen- 
sions, requiring  a  small  motive  power,  and  which 
bore  upon  a  cylinder  in  successive  rows  the  charac- 
ters required  for  printed  matter.  By  the  manipu- 
lation of  finger  keys,  while  the  cylinder  was  kept 
in  continuous  forward  motion,  the  characters  were 
printed  in  lithographic  ink  upon  a  paper  ribbon,  in 
proper  relation  to  each  other;  this  ribbon  was 
afterwards  cut  into  lengths,  arranged  in  the  form 
of  a  page,  "justified,"  to  a  certain  extent,  by  cut- 
ting between  and  separating  the  words,  and  then 
transferred  to  a  lithographic  stone,  from  which  the 
print  was  made.  Such  print  was  not,  of  course, 
of  the  highest  character,  but  it  was  a  beginning; 
and  the  machines  were  used  in  Washington  and 
New  York,  mainly  in  the  transcription  of  steno- 
graphic notes  taken  in  law  cases  and  in  the  proceed- 
ings of  legislative  committees.  A  number  of  these 
machines  was  built,  but  mechanical  difficulties 
became  so  frequent  that  the  parties  interested 
resolved,  very  wisely,  before  proceeding  to  build 
upon  a  large  scale,  to  put  the  machine  into  the 
hands  of  a  thorough  mechanical  expert,  so  that  it 
might  be  tried  out  and  a  determination  reached  as 
to  whether  or  not  it  was  a  commercially  practical 
54 


THE  LINOTYPE  MACHINE 

one.  At  the  head  of  the  little  company  of  men 
who  nurtured  this  enterprise  and  contributed 
most  largely  by  their  labors  and  means  to  its  de- 
velopment, were  James  0.  Clephane,  a  well-known 
law  and  convention  reporter,  and  Andrew  Devine, 
then  the  Senate  reporter  of  the  Associated  Press. 
In  their  search  for  an  expert,  a  Baltimore  manu- 
facturer named  Hahl,  who  had  constructed  some 
of  these  machines,  was  consulted,  and  upon  his 
recommendation  his  cousin,  Ottmar  Mergenthaler, 
was  selected  to  undertake  the  work,  and  thus  the 
future  inventor  of  the  Linotype  was  discovered. 

Mergenthaler  was  born  in  1854,  in  Wiirtemberg, 
Germany,  had  been  a  watchmaker,  and  at  this 
time  was  employed  upon  the  finer  parts  of  the 
mechanical  work  done  in  Hahl's  shop.  The  con- 
tract was  that  Mergenthaler  was  to  give  his  services 
at  a  rate  of  wages  considerably  beyond  what  he  was 
then  receiving,  and  Ilahl  was  to  charge  a  reason- 
able price  for  the  use  of  his  shop  and  tlie  cost  of 
material.  Tlie  task  undertaken,  however,  proved 
to  be  a  far  larger  one  than  had  been  anticipated, 
and  the  means  of  the  i)romoters  were  exhausted 
long  before  the  modifications  and  improvements 
continually  presented  had  been  worked  out.  Tlie 
circle  of  contributors  was  therefore  necessarily 
widened,  and  indeed  that  process  went  on  for 
years,  enough,  could  they  have  been  foreseen,  to 
have  dismayed  and  dishoaitcnod  those  who  were 
there  "in  the  beginning."  Mergenthaler  and 
55 


THE  BUILDING   OF   A  BOOK 

Moore,  assisted  by  the  practical  suggestions  of 
Clephane  and  Devine,  continued  to  work  upon  the 
problem  for  about  two  years,  by  which  time  the 
lithographic  printing  machine  had  become  one 
which  indented  the  characters  in  a  papier-mache 
strip,  and  this  being  cut  up  and  adjusted  upon  a 
flat  surface  in  lines,  the  way  was  prepared  for 
casting  in  type  metal.  The  next  step  of  impor- 
tance was  the  production  of  the  "bar  indenting 
machine,"  a  machine  which  carried  a  series  of 
metal  bars,  bearing  upon  their  edges  male  printing 
characters,  the  bars  being  provided  with  springs 
for  "justifying"  purposes.  The  papier-mache  ma- 
trix lines  resulting  from  pressure  against  the  charac- 
ters were  secured  upon  a  backing  sheet,  over  this 
sheet  w^as  laid  a  gridiron  frame  containing  a  series 
of  slots,  and  into  these  slots  type  metal  was  poured 
by  hand  to  form  slugs  bearing  the  characters 
from  which  to  print.  This  system  was  immediately 
followed  by  a  machine  which  cast  the  slugs  auto- 
matically, one  line  at  a  time,  from  the  matrix 
sheets. 

It  was  in  this  work  that  Mergenthaler  received 
the  education  which  resulted  in  his  great  invention 
and  in  due  time  he  presented  his  plans  for  a  ma- 
chine which  was  known  as  the  "  Band  "  machine. 
In  this  machine  the  characters  required  for  print- 
ing were  indented  in  the  edges  of  a  series  of  narrow 
brass  bands,  each  band  containing  a  full  alphabet, 
and  hanging,  with  spacers,  side  by  side  in  the 
50 


THE  LINOTYPE  MACHINE 

machine.  The  bands  tapered  in  thickness  from  top 
to  bottom,  the  characters  being  arranged  upon  them 
in  the  order  of  the  width-space  which  they  occupied. 
By  touching  the  keys  of  a  keyboard  similar  to  a 
typewriter,  the  bands  dropped  successively,  bring- 
ing the  characters  required  into  line  at  a  given 
point;  a  casting  mechanism  was  then  brought  in 
contact  with  this  line  of  characters,  molten  metal 
forced  against  it  through  a  mould  of  the  proper 
dimensions,  and  a  slug  with  a  printing  surface  upon 
its  face  was  thus  formed.  This  was  recognized 
as  a  great  advance  and  was  hailed  with  delight  by 
the  now  largely  increased  company.  The  neces- 
sary funds  were  provided  and  the  building  of  the 
new  machine  undertaken.  But  Mergenthaler  con- 
tinued active,  and  before  a  second  of  the  "Band" 
machines  could  be  built,  he  had  devised  a  plan  for 
dealing  with  the  letters  by  means  of  independent 
matrices.  These  matrices  were  pieces  of  brass 
measuring  \^  inches  by  |-  of  an  inch  and  of  the 
necessary  thickness  to  accommodate  the  character, 
which  it  bore  upon  its  edge  in  intaglio;  Ihoy  were 
stored  in  the  newly  devised  machine  in  vertical 
copper  tubes,  from  the  bases  of  which  they  were 
dra\Mi,  as  required,  by  a  mechanism  actuated  by 
finger  keys,  caught  by  the  "ears"  as  they  dropped 
upon  a  miniature  railway,  and  by  a  blast  of 
air  carried  one  by  one  to  the  assembling  point. 
Wedge  spacers  being  dropped  in  between  the 
words,  the  line  was  carried  to  the  front  of  the 
57 


THE   BUILDING  OF   A  BOOK 

mould,  where    "justification"   and   casting   took 
place. 

Success  seemed  at  last  to  have  been  reached, 
and  now  the  problem  was,  first,  how  to  obtain 
means  to  build  machines,  and  second,  how  to  per- 
suade printers  to  use  them.  The  first  of  these  was 
the  easier,  although  no  sUght  task;  the  second 
was  one  of  great  difficulty.  The  field  for  the 
machine  then  in  sight  was  the  newspaper,  and  the 
newspaper  must  appear  daily.  The  old  method  of 
printing  from  founder's  type,  set  for  the  most  part 
by  hand,  was  doing  the  work;  a  revolutionary 
method  by  which  the  type  was  to  be  made  and  set 
by  machine,  although  promising  great  economies, 
was  a  dangerous  innovation  and  one  from  which 
publishers  naturally  shrank.  They  could  see  the 
fate  which  awaited  them  if  they  adopted  the  new 
system  and  it  proved  unsuccessful.  However,  a 
number  of  newspaper  men,  after  a  careful  investi- 
gation of  the  whole  subject,  determined  to  make  the 
trial ;  and  the  leaders  of  these  were  Whitelaw  Reid 
of  the  New  York  Tribune,  Melvin  Stone  of  the 
Chicago  News  (to  whom  succeeded  Victor  F.  Law- 
son),  and  Walter  N.  Haldeman  of  the  Louisville 
Courier-,] ournal.  Into  these  offices,  then,  the  Lino- 
type went.  To  Mr,  Reid  belongs  the  honor  of 
gi\ing  the  machine  a  name  —  fine  of  type  —  Lino- 
type, and  of  first  using  it  to  print  a  daily  newspaper. 
Of  the  machine  last  described,  two  hundred  were 
built,  but  before  they  were  half  marketed,  the 
58 


THE  LINOTYPE  MACHINE 

ingenious  Mergenthaler  presented  a  new  form, 
which  showed  so  great  an  advance  that  it  was  per- 
force adopted,  and  the  machines  then  in  use,  al- 
though they  gave  excellent  results,  were  in  course  of 
time  displaced.  The  new  machine  did  away  with 
the  air  blast,  the  matrices  being  carried  to  the  as- 
sembUng  point  by  gravity  from  magazines  to  be 
hereafter  described,  and  the  distributing  elevator 
was  displaced  by  an  "arm"  which  lifted  the  hues 
of  matrices,  after  the  casting  process,  to  the  top  of 
the  machine  to  be  returned  to  their  places. 

The  improvements  made  in  the  Linotype  since 
Mergenthaler's  time  (who  died  in  1899  at  the  early 
age  of  forty-five)  have  been  very  great;  indeed, 
almost  a  new  machine  has  been  created  in  doing 
what  was  necessary  to  adaj^t  it  to  the  more  and 
more  exacting  work  which  it  was  called  upon  to 
perform  in  tlie  offices  of  the  great  American  book 
pubUshers.  These  imi)rovcmcnts  have  been  largely 
the  work  of,  or  the  following  out  of  suggestions  made 
by,  Philip  T.  Dodge,  the  patent  attonioy  of  the 
parties  interested  in  tlic  enterprise  from  tli(>  begin- 
ning, and  later  the  president  of  the  Mergenthaler 
Linotype  Coinjjany.  They  went  on  year  afler  year 
under  the  supervision  of  a  corps  of  gifted  niecliani- 
cal  experts,  the  chief  of  whom  was  John  R.  Rogers, 
the  inventor  of  the  Typograph,  until  from  the 
machine  of  Mergenthaler,  suj)plying  througli  its 
ninety  keys  as  many  characters,  a  machine  uj)- 
peared  yielding  three  hundred  and  sixty  different 
09 


THE   BUILDING  OF   A  BOOK 

characters  from  the  like  keyboard.  The  maga- 
zines, too,  were  capable  of  being  charged  with 
matrices  representing  any  face  from  Agate  (5- 
j)oint)  to  English  (14-point),  and  even  larger  faces 
for  display  advertising  and  for  initial  letters,  by 
special  contrivances  which  cannot  be  described 
Avithout  carrying  this  article  beyond  reasonable 
limits.  Among  the  ingenious  devices  added  are: 
the  Rogers  systems  of  setting  rule  and  figure 
tables,  box  heads,  etc. ;  the  reversal  of  the  line  so  as 
to  set  Hebrew  characters  in  their  proper  relation ; 
the  production  of  printers'  rules  of  any  pattern; 
the  making  of  ornamental  borders ;  a  device  for  the 
casting  of  the  same  line  an  indefinite  number  of 
times  from  one  setting.  The  machine  was  also 
greatly  simplified  in  its  construction. 

The  amount  of  money  expended  in  the  enter- 
prise before  the  point  of  profit  was  reached  was 
very  great ;  it  aggregated  many  millions  of  dollars ; 
but  the  promoters  had  faith  in  the  success  of  the 
machine  and  taxed  themselves  ungrudgingly. 
Among  tliose  wlio  contributed  largely  to  the  ulti- 
mate result  by  substantial  aid  and  wise  counsel  in 
the  conduct  of  the  business  the  name  of  D.  O. 
Mills  should  be  particularly  mentioned. 

It  was  Mergenthaler's  great  good  fortune  to  have 
had  as  his  supporters  many  men  of  the  character 
of  those  mentioned  above,  and  in  thus  being  re- 
Heved  of  all  financial  anxiety  and  permitted  to  work 
out  thoroughly  and  without  delay  every  idea  that 
6U 


THE   LINOTYPE  MACHINE 

suggested  itself  either  to  him  or  to  the  ingenious 
men  who  had  been  drawn  into  the  enterprise. 
His  profits,  too,  were  proportionate  to  the  company's 
success,  and  although  he  did  not  live  to  enjoy  them 
for  his  natural  term  of  years,  he  had  the  satisfac- 
tion of  knowing  that  a  handsome  income  would 
continue  to  flow  into  the  hands  of  his  wife  and 
children. 

The  company's  principal  works  are  situated  in 
the  Borough  of  Brooklyn,  New  York  City,  and 
have  a  space  devoted  to  manufacturing  purposes 
of  about  one  hundred  and  sixty  thousand  square 
feet.  Approximately  one  hundred  Linotypes,  be- 
sides a  large  number  of  smaller  machines  and  a  vast 
quantity  of  supplies,  are  turned  out  from  there 
every  month;  but  the  growing  demand  from  abroad 
for  American-built  machines  has  led  to  the  consider- 
ation of  j)lans  for  an  entirely  new  establishment,  to 
be  built  in  accordance  with  the  latest  modes  of 
factory  construction.  About  ten  thousand  Lino- 
types are  now  in  daily  use. 

The  machine  as  at  i)resent  built  is  shown  in  part 
by  the  accompanying  cut,  and  its  operation  may 
be  briefly  described  as  follows :  — 

The  Linotype  machiiio  contains,  as  i(s  funda- 
mental elements,  several  hundred  single  matrices, 
which  consist  of  flat  i)latos  of  brass  hnving  on  one 
edge  a  female  loiter  or  matrix  proper,  and  in  the 
upper  end  a  series  of  teeth,  used  for  selecting  and 
distributing  them  to  their  jiropcr  places  in  the 
Gl 


THE  BUILDING  OF   A  BOOK 

magazine.  These  matrices  are  held  in  the  maga- 
zine of  the  machine,  a  channel  of  it  being  devoted 
to  each  separate  character,  and  there  are  also 
channels  which  carry  quads  of  definite  thickness 
for  use  in  tabular  work,  etc.  The  machine  is  so 
organized  that  on  manipulating  the  finger  keys, 
matrices  are  selected  in  the  order  in  which  their 
characters  are  to  appear  in  print,  and  they  are 
assembled  in  line  side  by  side  at  the  point  marked 
G  in  the  illustration,  with  wedge-shaped  spaces 
between  the  words.  This  series  of  assembled 
matrices  forms  a  line  matrix,  or,  in  other  words,  a 
line  of  female  type  adapted  to  form  a  hne  of  raised 
printed  characters  on  a  slug  which  is  cast  against 
them.  After  the  matrix  line  has  been  composed,  it 
is  automatically  transferred  to  the  face  of  a  slotted 
mould,  as  shown  at  K,  and  while  in  this  position 
the  wedge  spaces  are  pushed  up  through  the  line, 
and  in  this  manner  exact  and  instantaneous  justi- 
fication is  secured.  Behind  the  mould  there  is  a 
melting  pot,  M,  heated  by  a  flame  from  a  gas  or  oil 
burner,  and  containing  a  constant  supply  of 
molten  metal.  The  pot  has  a  perforated  mouth 
which  fits  against  and  closes  the  rear  side  of  the 
mould,  and  it  contains  a  pump  plunger  mechanically 
actuated.  After  the  matrix  line  is  in  place  against 
the  front  of  the  mould,  the  plunger  falls  and  forces 
the  molten  metal  through  the  mouth  pot  into  the 
mould,  against  and  into  the  characters  in  the  matrix 
line.     The  metal  instantly  solidifies,  forming  a  slug 

62 


A  Linotype  .Matrix 


Diagriiiii  of  the  I.iiioiyiPi-  Mailiiiic 


Liuotype  Slu^.s 


|pos 
The  Liuotype  Melting  Pot  aud  Mold  Wheel 


THE   LINOTYPE  MACHINE 

having  on  its  edge  raised  characters  formed  by  the 
matrices.  The  mould  wheel  next  makes  a  partial 
revolution,  turning  the  mould  from  its  original  hori- 
zontal position  to  a  vertical  one  in  front  of  an 
ejector  blade,  which,  advancing  from  the  rear  through 
the  mould,  pushes  the  slug  from  the  latter  into  the 
recei\dng  galley  at  the  front.  A  vibrating  arm 
advances  the  slugs  laterally  in  the  galley,  assem- 
bUng  them  in  column  or  page  form  ready  for  use. 
To  insure  absolute  accuracy  in  the  height  and 
thickness  of  the  slugs,  knives  are  arranged  to  act 
upon  the  base  and  side  faces  as  they  are  being 
carried  toward  the  galley.  After  the  matrices 
have  served  their  purpose  in  front  of  the  mould, 
they  are  shifted  laterally  until  the  teeth  in  their 
upper  ends  engage  the  horizontal  ribs  on  the  bar 
R ;  this  bar  then  rises,  as  shown  by  the  dotted  lines, 
hfting  the  matrices  to  the  distributor  at  the  top  of 
the  machine,  but  leaving  the  wedge  spacers,  /, 
behind,  to  be  shifted  to  their  box,  //.  The  teeth 
in  the  toj)  of  cacli  matrix  are  arranged  in  a  special 
order,  according  to  the  character  it  contains,  the 
number  or  relation  of  its  teetli  diffcM'ing  from  that 
of  a  matrix  containing  any  other  cliaractcr,  and 
this  difference  insures  proper  distribution.  A  dis- 
tributor bar,  T,  is  fixed  horizontally  over  the  upj^er 
enrl  of  tlio  magazine  and  bears  on  its  lower  edge 
longitudinal  ribs  or  teeth,  adapted  to  engage  the 
teeth  of  the  matrices  and  hold  the  latter  in  suspen- 
sion as  they  are  cariiod  along  the  bar  over  the 

03 


THE  BUILDING  OF  A  BOOK 

mouths  of  the  magazine  channels  by  means  of 
screws  which  engage  their  edges.  Each  matrix 
remains  in  engagement  with  the  bar  until  it  arrives 
at  the  required  point,  directly  over  its  own  channel, 
and  at  this  point  for  the  first  time  its  teeth  bear 
such  relation  to  those  on  the  bar  that  it  is  per- 
mitted to  disengage  and  fall  into  the  channel.  It 
is  to  be  particularly  noted  that  the  matrices  pursue 
a  circulatory  course  through  the  machine,  starting 
singly  from  the  bottom  of  the  magazine  and  passing 
thence  to  the  fine  being  composed,  thence  in  the 
line  to  the  mould,  and  finally  back  singly  to  the  top 
of  the  magazine.  This  circulation  permits  the 
operations  of  composing  one  line,  casting  from  a 
second,  and  distributing  a  third,  to  be  carried  on 
concurrently,  and  enables  the  machine  to  run  at  a 
speed  exceeding  that  at  which  an  operator  can 
finger  the  keys.  A  change  from  one  face  of  type 
to  any  other  is  effected  by  simply  drawing  ofi  one 
magazine  and  substituting  another  containing 
the  face  required,  so  that  the  variety  of  faces 
needs  to  be  limited  only  by  the  number  of 
them  which  the  printer  chooses  to  carry  in  his 
stock. 

Matrices  are  also  made  bearing  two  characters, 
as  the  ordinary  body  character  and  the  correspond- 
ing italics,  or  a  body  character  and  a  small  capital 
or  a  black  face,  and  either  of  these  is  brought  into 
use  as  desired  by  the  touching  of  a  key,  so  that  if, 
for  instance,  it  is  required  to  print  a  word  in  italics 
64 


THE  LINOTYPE  MACHINE 

or  black  face  at  any  part  of  the  line  being  com- 
posed, it  is  effected  in  this  way,  and  composition 
in  the  body  letter  is  resumed  by  releasing  the  key. 
The  latest  pattern  of  machine  is  supplied  with 
two  magazines,  superimposed  one  above  the 
other,  each  with  its  own  distributing  apparatus. 
The  operator  can  elect,  by  moving  a  lever,  from 
which  magazine  the  letter  wanted  will  fall  —  the 
same  keyboard  serving  foi-  both.  It  is  thus  pos- 
sible to  set  two  sizes  of  type  from  one  machine, 
each  matrix  showing  two  characters  as  described 
above. 


6n 


COMPOSITION  BY  THE  MONOTYPE 
MACHINE 

By  Paul  Nathan 

Though  for  more  than  half  a  century  machines 
adapted  for  the  setting  of  type  have  been  in  use, 
it  is  only  within  a  few  years  that  the  average 
printer  of  books  has  been  enabled  to  avail  him- 
self of  the  services  of  a  mechanical  substitute  for 
the  hand  compositor.  The  fact  seems  to  be  that 
despite  the  ingenuity  that  was  brought  to  bear 
upon  the  problem,  the  pioneer  inventors  were 
satisfied  to  obtain  speed,  with  its  resultant 
economy,  at  the  expense  of  the  quahty  of  the 
finished  product.  Thus,  until  comparatively  re- 
cently, machine  composition  was  debarred  from 
the  establishments  of  the  makers  of  fine  books,  and 
found  its  chief  field  of  activity  in  the  office  of  news- 
paper publishers  and  others  to  whom  a  technically 
perfect  output  was  not  essential  so  long  as  a  dis- 
tinct saving  of  time  and  labor  could  be  assured. 
Thanks,  however,  to  persistent  effort  on  the  part 
of  those  inventors  who  would  not  be  satisfied 
until  a  machine  was  evolved  which  should  equal 
in  its  output  the  work  of  the  hand  compositor,  the 
G6 


THE  MONOTYPE  MACHINE 

problem  has  been  triumphantly  solved,  and  to-day 
the  very  finest  examples  of  the  printed  book  owe 
their  being  to  the  mechanical  type-setter. 

The  claim  is  made  for  one  of  these  machines, 
the  monotype,  that,  so  far  from  lowering  the 
standard  of  composition,  its  introduction  into  the 
offices  of  the  leading  book  printers  of  the  world 
has  had  the  contrary  efTect,  and  that  it  is  only  the 
work  of  the  most  skilful  hand  compositor  which 
can  at  every  point  be  compared  with  that  turned 
out  by  the  machine.  The  fact  that  the  type  for 
some  recent  books  of  the  very  highest  class,  so- 
called  "editions  de  luxe,"  has  been  cast  and  set 
by  the  monotype  machine  would  seem  to  afford 
justification  for  this  claim,  extravagant  as  at 
first  glance  it  may  appear. 

The  monotype  machine  is,  to  use  a  Hiberni- 
cism,  two  machines,  which,  though  (|uitc  separate 
and  unrelated,  are  yet  mutually  interdependent 
and  necessary  the  one  to  the  other.  One  of 
these  is  the  composing  machine,  or  keyboard,  the 
other  the  castor,  or  type-founder.  To  begin  with 
the  former:  this  is  in  appearance  not  unlike  a 
large  tyf)ewrit('r  standing  upon  an  iron  jM'dcstal, 
the  keyboaid  wliicli  forms  its  i)rincij)al  feature  liav- 
ing  two  hundred  and  twenty-five  keys  correspond- 
ing to  as  many  dilTerent  cliaractcrs.  This  key- 
board is  generally  placed  in  some  such  jjosition  in 
the  printing  ofiice  as  conduces  to  the  health  and 
comfort  of  the  ojjcrator,  for  tiicre  is  no  moro  noise 

07 


THE  BUILDING  OF  A   BOOK 

or  disagreeable  consequence  attendant  on  its  opera- 
tion than  in  the  case  of  the  familiar  typewriter, 
which  it  so  markedly  resembles. 

It  has  been  said  that  the  machines  are  inter- 
dependent ;  yet  they  are  entirely  independent  as  to 
time  and  place.  The  keyboard,  as  a  matter  of 
fact,  acts  as  a  sort  of  go-between  betwixt  the 
operator  and  the  casting-machine,  setting  the  latter 
the  task  it  has  to  perform  and  indicating  to  it 
the  precise  manner  of  its  performance.  A  roll  of 
paper,  which  as  the  keyboard  is  operated  contin- 
uously unwinds  and  is  rewound,  forms  the  actual 
means  of  communication  between  the  two  ma- 
chines. The  operator,  as  he  (or  she,  for  in  increas- 
ing numbers  women  are  being  trained  as  monotype 
operators)  sits  facing  the  keyboard,  has  before 
him,  conveniently  hanging  from  an  adjustable 
arm,  the  "copy"  that  has  to  be  set  in  type.  As  he 
reads  it  he  manipulates  the  keys  precisely  as  does 
an  operator  on  a  typewriter,  but  each  key  as  it  is 
depressed,  in  place  of  writing  a  letter,  punches 
certain  round  holes  in  the  roll  of  paper.  Enough 
keys  are  depressed  to  form  a  word,  then  one  is 
touched  to  form  a  space,  and  so  on  until  just  before 
the  end  of  the  line  is  reached  (the  length  of  this 
line,  or  the" measure,"  as  it  is  termed,  has  at  the 
outset  been  determined  upon  by  the  setting  of  an 
indicator)  a  bell  rings,  and  the  operator  knows  that 
he  must  prepare  to  finish  the  hne  with  a  completed 
word  or  syllable  and  then  proceed  to  justify  it. 

68 


Till-  Mi>ii<'iy|><'  Ki'VJMiiirfl 


The  .Monotype  Caster 


THE  MONOTYPE  MACHINE 

"Justification,"  as  it  is  termed,  is  perhaps  the  most 
difficult  function  of  either  the  hand  or  the  machine 
compositor.  On  the  deftness  with  which  this  func- 
tion is  discharged  depends  almost  entirely  the  typo- 
graphic excellence  of  the  printed  page.  To 
justify  is  to  so  increase  the  distance  between  the 
words  by  the  introduction  of  type-metal  "spaces" 
as  to  enable  the  characters  to  exactly  fill  the  line. 
To  make  these  spaces  as  nearly  equal  as  possible 
is  the  aim  of  every  good  printer,  and  in  proportion 
as  he  succeeds  in  his  endeavor  the  printed  page 
will  please  the  eye  and  be  free  from  those  irregu- 
larities of  "white  space,"  which  detract  from  its 
legibility  as  well  as  from  its  artistic  appearance. 

That  the  monotype  should  not  only  "justify" 
each  line  automatically,  but  justify  with  a  mathe- 
matical exactness  impossible  of  attainment  by 
the  more  or  less  rough-and-ready  methods  of  the 
most  careful  human  type-setter  is  at  first  thought 
a  little  bewildering.  The  fact  remains,  however, 
that  it  does  so,  and  another  triumph  is  to  be  re- 
corded for  man's  "instruments  of  precision." 

Monotype  justification  is  effected  as  follows : 
an  ingenious  registering  device  waits,  as  it  were, 
on  all  the  movements  of  the  operator,  with  the 
result  that  when  he  has  approached  as  close  to  the 
end  of  the  line  as  he  dare  go,  he  has  merely  to 
glance  at  a  cylindrical  dial  in  front  of  him.  The 
pointer  on  this  dial  signifies  to  him  which  of  the 
"justifying   keys"  he  must  depress.     He  touclies 

69 


THE  BUILDING  OF  A  BOOK 

them  in  accordance  therewith,  and  the  line  is 
justified,  or  rather  it  ivill  be  justified  when, 
as  will  be  seen  later  on,  the  casting  machine 
takes  up  its  part  of  the  work.  That  is  the 
outward  manifestation;  it  remains  to  be  seen  in 
what  manner  the  machine  accomplishes  its  task. 
Firstly,  the  machine  automatically  notes  the  ex- 
act width  of  the  space  left  over  at  the  line's 
end;  then,  also  automatically,  it  records  the 
number  of  spaces  between  the  words  already 
set  which  form  the  incompleted  line;  finally, 
it  divides  the  residuary  space  into  as  many  parts 
as  there  are  word-spaces,  and  allots  to  each 
of  these  one  of  the  parts.  Thus  if  there  is  one- 
tenth  of  an  inch  to  spare  at  the  end  of  the  line  and 
ten  word-spaces,  then  one-hundredth  of  an  inch 
added  to  each  of  these  spaces  will  justify  the  line 
^vith  mathematical  accuracy.  But  the  machine 
will  do  something  more  wonderful  than  this.  It 
will  separately  justify  separate  parts  of  the  same 
line.  The  utility  of  this  is  comprehended  when 
it  is  pointed  out  that  when  the  "copy"  to  be  set 
consists  of  what  is  technically  termed  "tabular" 
matter,  the  various  columns  of  figures  or  so  forth 
composing  it  are  not  composed  vertically  but 
horizontally  and  so  each  section  must  of  necessity 
be  justified  separately. 

Should  the  compositor  be  required  to  "over-run 
illustrations,"  as  the  term  goes,  in  other  words  to 
leave  a  space  in  which  the  "  block  "  f or  a  cut  may  be 

70 


THE  MONOTYPE  MACHINE 

inserted,  so  that  it  may  havn  t3'pe  all  around  it 
or  on  one  side  of  it  only,  the  machine  offers  no 
difficulty  at  all.  All  that  the  operator  has  to  do 
in  this  case  is  to  carry  the  composition  of  each  line 
as  far  as  necessary  and  then  complete  it  with  a 
row  of  "quads,"  or  spaces.  Thus,  when  the  com- 
position is  cast  by  the  casting-machine  the  space 
into  which  the  block  is  to  fit  is  occupied  by  a 
square  of  "(juads."  These  have  only  to  be  lifted 
out,  the  block  inserted,  and  the  trick  is  done. 

We  will  then  imagine  that  the  operator  has 
finished  his  task.  Of  the  bank  of  two  hundred 
and  twenty-five  keys  in  front  of  him  (the  equiva- 
lent of  a  full  "font"  of  type,  with  figures,  italics, 
and  symbols  complete),  he  has  depressed  in  turn 
those  necessary  to  spell  out  the  words  of  his  copy, 
he  has  put  a  space  between  the  words  he  has 
justified  in  accordance  with  the  dictates  of  the 
justifying  dial,  has  arranged  the  spaces  for  the 
insertion  of  Ijlocks  or  illustrations,  and  as  the  result 
of  his  labois  he  has  merely  a  loll  of  perforated 
paper  not  unlike  that  which  operates  the  now 
familiar  pianola  or  piano-player.  Yet  this  roll  of 
paper  is  the  informing  spirit,  as  it  were,  of  the 
machine.  Its  production  is  the  only  portion  of 
the  work  of  the  monotype  for  which  a  human 
directing  agency  is  necessary,  every  other  function 
being  purely  automatic. 

Tiie  roll  of  perforated  ribbon  is  lifted  off  the  key- 
board and  f)ut  in  place  on  the  casting-  and  setting- 

71 


THE   BUILDING  OF  A  BOOK 

machine.  As  it  is  swiftly  unwound  it  delivers  to 
the  casting-machine  the  message  with  which  the 
operator  has  charged  it.  Tlirough  the  perforations 
he  has  made  compressed  air  is  forced.  Now,  as 
has  been  explained,  the  holes  correspond  to  the 
characters  or  typographic  symbols  of  the  "copy," 
and  the  jet  of  air  forced  through  them  sets  in 
motion  the  machinery,  which  controls  what  is 
known  as  the  "matrix-case,"  a  rectangular  metal 
frame  about  five  inches  square,  which  contains 
two  hundred  and  twenty-five  matrices,  or  little 
blocks  of  hardened  copper,  each  one  of  which  is  a 
mould  corresponding  to  a  character  on  the  key- 
board. This  frame  is  mounted  horizontally  on  a 
slide,  which  by  an  ingenious  mechanical  movement 
brings  any  one  of  the  two  hundred  and  twenty- 
five  matrices  over  what  is  termed  the  mould.  The 
particular  matrix  thus  placed  in  position  is  de- 
termined by  those  particular  holes  punched  in  the 
paper  ribbon  at  the  keyboard,  through  which  the 
compressed  air  is  at  that  precise  moment  being 
forced. 

Tlie  mould  referred  to  is  closed  by  the  matrix, 
a  jet  of  molten  metal  is  forced  in,  and  in  an 
instant  the  type  is  cast,  its  face  being  formed 
by  the  matrix,  its  body  or  shank  by  the  mould. 
The  cast  type  is  ejected  and  takes  its  place  in  the 
galley,  to  be  followed  by  another  and  that  by  yet 
others  in  thoir  regular  rotation.  It  must,  however, 
be  pointed  out  that  the  composition  emerges  from 

72 


THE  MONOTYPE  MACHINE 

the  machine  hind  part  foremost  and  upside  down 
as  it  were.  This  enables  the  justification  holes, 
which  were  originally  punched  at  the  end  and  not 
at  the  beginning  of  each  line,  to  direct  the  proper 
casting  of  the  spaces  in  the  lines  to  which  they 
correspond. 

It  will  be  seen,  therefore,  that  the  casting  portion 
of  the  monotype  machine  is  actually  automatic. 
It  performs  all  its  operations  without  human 
assistance  or  direction.  Occasionally  it  will  stop  of 
its  own  accord  and  refuse  to  work,  but  this  merely 
means  that  it  has  found  something  amiss  with 
the  perforated  instructions,  a  mistake  as  to 
the  length  of  a  line  or  so  forth,  and  it  refuses  to 
continue  until  the  workman  in  charge  of  it  puts 
the  error  right,  then  it  starts  on  again  and  con- 
tinues on  its  even  course,  casting  letters  and  spaces 
and  punctuation  marks,  and  arranging  them  first 
in  words,  then  in  lines,  next  in  paragraphs,  antl 
finally  in  a  column  on  the  galley. 

The  casting-machine  works  at  so  high  a  rate  of 
speed  (casting  from  one  hundred  and  forty  to  one 
hundred  and  fifty  characters  per  minute)  that  it  can 
in  its  output  keep  well  ahead  of  the  operator  on 
the  keyboard.  This,  however,  so  far  from  being  an 
inconvenience  or  leading  to  any  loss  of  time,  is  an 
advantage,  for  four  casting-machines,  which  can 
easily  be  looked  after  by  one  man  and  a  boy,  can 
cope  with  the  work  of  five  keyboard  operators,  or 
if  all  arc  engaged  on  the  same  character  of  com- 

73 


THE  BUILDING  OF  A  BOOK 

position  two  casters  can  attend  to  the  output  of 
three  keyboards.  This  suggests  a  reference  to  the 
facihties  offered  by  the  machme  for  the  production 
of  matter  composed  in  various  faces  of  type. 
The  machine  casts  practically  all  sizes  in  general 
use  from  five-point,  or  "pearl,"  to  fourteen  point, 
or  "English."  Owing  to  the  number  of  characters 
included  in  the  matrix-case,  it  can  at  the  same  time 
set  upper  and  lower  case,  small  capitals,  and  upper 
and  lower  case  italics,  or  any  similar  combination 
of  two  or  even  three  different  faced  alphabets. 
To  change  from  one  complete  set  of  matrices  to 
another  is  a  simple  operation,  performed  in  about 
a  minute  of  time,  while  the  changing  of  mould, 
which  insures  a  corresponding  change  in  the  size  of 
the  "body"  of  the  type,  takes  about  ten  minutes. 
To  return,  however,  to  the  perforated  roll  of 
paper,  which  it  must  be  imagined  has  passed  en- 
tirely through  the  casting-machine  and  has  been 
automatically  re-rolled.  Its  present  function  has 
come  to  an  end,  and  it  is  now  lifted  out  of  its  posi- 
tion on  the  machine  and  placed  away  for  future 
reference  in  a  drawer  or  cabinet.  This  is  a  by 
no  means  unimportant  feature  of  the  Monotype, 
for  it  is  thus  no  longer  necessary  to  preserve  the 
heavy,  cumbrous,  and  expensive  "plates"  of  a 
book  in  anticipation  of  a  second  edition  being 
called  for  at  some  future  time.  As  a  matter  of  fact, 
indeed,  "plates,"  or  electrotypes  of  monotyped 
matter,  are    by    no    means    a    necessity.    Many 

74 


THE  MONOTYPE  MACHINE 

thousand  impressions  can  with  safety  be  printed 
from  the  types  themselves,  and  these  latter  at  the 
conclusion  of  the  job  can  be  remelted  and  new 
type  cast  from  the  resultant  metal.  The  paper 
rolls,  occupying  but  a  few  square  inches  of  space, 
can  be  kept,  and  when  the  time  arrives  may  be 
passed  through  the  casting-machine  again,  to  supply 
a  new  printing  surface  identical  in  every  respect 
with  the  original. 

But  the  galley  of  monotyped  composition  has 
been  waiting  during  this  digression.  It  is  lifted 
off  the  machine  by  the  attendant  and  a  rough 
proof  pulled,  which  is  corrected  by  the  proof- 
reader. The  advantage  of  the  individual  types  is 
then  apparent,  for  the  composition  is  corrected 
and  otherwise  handled  precisely  as  would  be  the 
case  had  the  matter  been  set  entirely  by  hand. 
Indeed,  the  operation  consumes  even  less  time,  for 
the  discarded  characters,  instead  of  being  placed 
back  carefully  in  their  proper  comjmrtmcnts  in 
the  case  for  future  use,  are  merely  thrown  aside 
by  the  corrector,  to  find  their  way  eventually  into 
the  melting  [)ot.  It  may  be  added,  however,  that 
the  Monotype  itself  furnishes  the  types  used  in 
the  correction  of  its  matter  —  "sorts,"  as  they  arc 
termcMl  by  the  printer.  These  arc  cast  by  the 
machine  during  the  times  when  it  is  not  employed 
upon  more  important  work. 

Indcf'd,  an  attachinont  has  recently  been  added 
to  the  machhie,  whereby  its  use  as  a  type-caster 

75 


THE  BUILDING  OF  A  BOOK 

is  still  further  extended.  As  has  been  mentioned, 
the  machine  casts  and  composes  type  of  any 
sized  face,  from  five  to  fourteen  point.  With, 
however,  the  attachment  referred  to,  it  can  now 
cast  for  the  use  of  the  hand  compositor  complete 
fonts  of  type  up  to  and  including  thirty-six  point 
in  size,  so  that  an  entire  book,  title-page  included, 
nowada3''s  often  owes  its  typographical  "dress" 
to  the  ingenious  machine  known  as  "The  Lanston 
Monotype." 


76 


PROOF-READING 
By  George  L.  IMiller 

When  part  of  a  book  has  been  set  up  in  type, 
in  what  is  called  "galley  form,"  an  impression  is 
taken,  technically  known  as  "first  proof,"  and  this 
proof  is  handed  to  the  proof-reader.  This  long- 
suffering  individual  lives  in  a  chronic  state  of 
warfare  with  the  compositors  on  the  one  hand  and 
the  author  on  the  other.  His  first  duty  is  to  see 
that  the  proof  agrees  with  the  author's  manuscript, 
that  nothing  has  been  omitted,  and  nothing  in- 
serted that  is  not  in  the  copy.  He  must  see, 
further,  that  the  spelling,  punctuation,  capitaliza- 
tion, grammar,  and  so  forth,  are  correct,  and  the 
book  sot  according  to  the  "style"  ordered.  Ho 
first  of  all,  therefore,  compares  the  proof  with  the 
manuscript,  or  an  assistant  reads  the  manuscript 
aloud,  the  proof-roador  listening  intently  for  any 
variation  from  the  proof  before  him  and  marking 
any  errors  he  may  find. 

Now  this  seems  easy  enough,  and  if  every  author 
prepared  his  copy  carefully,  so  that  there  could  be 
no  possible  mistake  as  to  his  meaning,  nothing 
would   be  easier;    but  in   practice  a  number  of 

77 


THE  BUILDING  OF  A   BOOK 

questions  arise  which  would  never  be  thought 
of  by  an  outsider.  On  a  new  work  being  put  in 
hand,  some  half-dozen  compositors  are  given  a 
few  sheets  of  copy  apiece,  and  if  the  proof-reader 
happens  to  be  readily  accessible  he  is  bombarded 
within  the  first  half-hour  or  so  with,  "How  am  I 
to  spell  centre?"  "Has  travelling  one  or  two 
I's?"  "Shall  I  capitalize  the  word  State?" 
"Shall  I  spell  out  two  hundred?"  "Do  you 
want  ships'  names  in  Italic?"  and  so  on  and  so 
on.  As  to  punctuation,  every  compositor  thinks 
he  knows  better  than  proof-reader  and  author 
combined  and  follows  his  own  sweet  will.  As 
every  error  on  the  first  proof  must  be  corrected  by 
the  compositor  at  his  own  expense,  here  arises  the 
cause  of  war  mentioned  in  our  opening  paragraph. 
Much  has  been  written  about  printers'  errors 
and  the  mistakes  of  "the  intelhgent  compositor." 
Aside  from  those  caused  by  illegible  manuscript, 
mistakes  arise  from  faulty  "distribution,"  that 
is  to  say,  the  type  has  been  thrown  into  the  wrong 
boxes.  Thus  we  get  c  for  e,  h  for  n,  y  for  p,  etc., 
these  boxes  being  contiguous  and  the  letters  of 
the  same  thickness ;  if,  for  instance,  the  compositor 
picked  up  u  instead  of  t  the  difference  in  thickness 
would  at  once  be  noticed  by  him  and  the  mistake 
rectified.  Then  letters  are  sometimes  set  upside 
down  and  we  find  letters  of  a  different  "face" 
which  have  got  into  the  case  by  mistake.  In 
type  set  on  machine,  errors  arise  from  striking 

7$ 


PROOF-READING 

adjacent  keys,  or  some  matrix  will  stick  in  the 
channel  and  make  its  appearance  later,  sometimes 
even  in  the  next  Une.  But  the  chief  source  of 
error  is  illegible  or  carelessly  prepared  manuscript, 
and  to  the  author's  slips  of  the  pen  must  be  added 
in  these  days  the  slips  of  the  typewriter. 

It  is  quite  possible  for  a  man  to  be  an  expert  in 
astronomy,  medicine,  or  natural  history  and  yet 
have  hazy  ideas  on  spelling  and  punctuation. 
"When  in  doubt  use  a  dash"  is  an  old  standing 
joke,  but  some  authors  use  dashes  all  the  time, 
making  them  do  duty  for  commas,  semicolons,  and 
periods.  They  will  write  indifferently  4  or  four 
and  frequently  their  capital  a's  c's,  m's,  and  n's 
cannot  be  distinguished  from  the  small  letters. 
They  will  commence  a  story  tclhng  that  the 
"Captain"  did  so  and  so,  and  lo,  on  the  next  page 
the  "captain"  sinks  into  a  common  noun;  and 
so  with  "leather,"  "mother,"  "Aunt,"  "uncle," 
etc.  Just  see  what  the  story  would  look  like  if 
set  according  to  copy ! 

Now  tlie  proof-reader  is  expected  lo  rectify  Jill 
this,  therel^y  drawing  on  his  head  the  wrath  of 
the  compositor,  who  says  "he  followed  the  copy," 
and  occasionally  incurring  the  wrath  of  the  author 
as  well  for  doj>arting  therefrom.  .Sometimes  in- 
structions are  given  that  the  author's  sj)elling, 
punctuation,  etc.,  are  to  be  carefully  followed, 
when  of  course  no  (|uestion  can  arise;  and  the 
proof-reader  will  ciuery  on  the  proof  submitted  to 

70 


THE  BUILDING  OF  A   BOOK 

the  author  anything  which  does  not  seem  to  him 
to  be  correct. 

The  great  newspapers  and  magazines  have  what 
they  call  a  "style  sheet"  for  the  guidance  of  their 
compositors  and  proof-readers  and  insist  on  its 
being  faithfully  followed.  Only  by  this  means 
could  uniformity  in  the  appearance  of  the  paper 
be  secured.  In  this  style  sheet  careful  and  minute 
directions  are  given  for  the  use  of  capital  letters, 
the  use  of  ItaUc,  spelling  out  of  numbers,  compound 
words,  etc.  In  the  Government  printing-office  in 
Washington  they  have  a  style  book  of  some  two 
hundred  pages.  Some  book  printing-offices  have 
what  they  call  "the  style  of  the  office,"  which  will 
be  followed  if  no  instructions  are  received  from  the 
author  to  the  contrary,  while  some  publishing 
houses  with  connections  in  England  insist  on 
English  spelling  being  followed  in  all  their  books, 
as  books  with  American  spelling  will  not  sell  over 
there. 

Here  is  an  outline  of  an  "office  style":  — 

"Spell  and  divide  words  according  to  Webster's 
dictionary. 

"Capitalize  President  and  all  Secretaries  of 
State,  Senator,  Congressman,  Governor,  Govern- 
ment (of  U.S.  or  other  country).  King,  Emperor, 
Republican  (and  all  political  parties),  all  pronouns 
relating  to  the  Deity,  Legislature,  State,  Nation, 
Street,   Avenue,    (Hudson)   River. 

"Use  small  capitals  for  b.c,  a.d.,  a.m.,  and  p.m. 
80 


PROOF-READING 

"  Use  Italics  for  names  of  ships,  names  of  charac- 
ters in  plays,  names  of  newspapers  and  magazines, 
and  all  foreign  words. 

"Use  quotation  marks  for  names  of  books. 

"Spell  out  all  numbers  under  100. 

"Compound  co-operate,  to-day,  to-morrow. 

"Use  period  after  per  cent.,  and  Roman  numer- 
als I.  VI.,  etc. 

"Bible  references  in  this  style:  2  Kings  vii.  29. 

"All  poetical  quotations  to  be  in  smaller  type 
than  text." 

Now,  some  authors  will  not  accept  the  above 
style  and  insist  on  one  entirely  different.  Many 
will  accept  Webster's  spelling  but  draw  the  line  at 
theater,  which  they  want  spelt  theatre,  and  balk  at 
skillfully  and  akilljul  or  in^lallment.  Tliey  will 
order  spelling  according  to  the  Standard  Diction- 
ary, yet  will  not  accept  sulfur,  rime,  or  ivorshiping. 
One  man  wants  all  his  numbers  in  figures,  and 
another  does  not  like  compound  words.  Still 
another  abhors  dashes  or  colons,  or  quotation 
marks,  and  yet  another  will  not  have  Italic  type 
used  in  his  work. 

So  it  frequently  happens  that  a  proof-reader  will 
have  passing  through  his  hands  three  or  four  books 
in  entirely  different  styles,  each  of  which  he  must 
bear  in  mind  and  conform  to  if  he  would  avoid 
trouble.  But  wliatever  style  be  adopted,  it  is 
essential  that  it  be  strictly  adhered  to  throughout 
the  work ;  therefore  in  large  printing-offices  where 

81 


THE  BUILDING  OF  A  BOOK 

there  are  many  proof-readers  care  is  always  taken 
that,  however  many  compositors  may  be  engaged 
in  setting  up  the  work,  the  same  reader  handles 
it  from  start  to  finish. 

If  the  proof-reader  finds  any  passages  whose 
meaning  is  not  clear,  or  sentences  of  faulty  con- 
struction, he  will  call  the  author's  attention  thereto. 
He  will  also  call  attention  to  BibUcal  or  poetical 
quotations  which  he  may  know  to  be  incorrect. 
Many  authors  will  quote  Scripture  or  poetry  from 
memory,  which  is  found  to  vary  in  many  respects 
from  the  original  on  verification.  And  then  they 
complain  because  "the  printer  did  not  set  it  up 
right,"  —  when  they  are  charged  for  corrections. 
But  why  should  the  compositor  bear  the  expense 
of  correction  —  or  the  master-printer  for  that 
matter  —  when  the  copy  was  clearly  wrong  in  the 
first  instance?  A  moment's  thought  will  show 
the  injustice  of  such  a  procedure. 

From  what  we  have  said  may  be  seen  the  impor- 
tance of  the  reading  of  "  first  proof."  Many  offices 
have  the  proofs  read  twice,  first  without  referring 
to  the  copy,  when  the  more  glaring  errors  may  be 
corrected  at  leisure,  and  then  again  carefully  read 
by  copy.  The  proofs  are  then  returned  to  the 
compositors  for  correction,  each  man  correcting 
the  portion  he  set  up. 

A  second  proof  is  now  taken  which  is  put  in 
the  hands  of  another  proof-reader  (or  "reviser") 
for  revision.  His  business  is  to  see  that  the  correc- 
82 


PROOF-READING 

tions  of  the  first  reader  have  all  been  duly  made. 
Should  he  find  any  palpable  errors  that  have  been 
overlooked  by  the  first  reader,  he  will  call  his 
attention  thereto  and  on  approval  mark  them. 
It  may  be  necessary  to  return  the  proofs  again  to 
the  compositors  for  correction,  and  even  a  third 
time.  When  found  to  be  what  is  called  "clean," 
they  are  sent  to  the  author  (usually  in  dupHcate) 
along  with  the  copy. 

And  now  the  author  sees  himself  in  print,  per- 
haps for  the  first  time.  He  will  notice  that  his 
work  presents  a  different  appearance  from  what 
it  did  in  manuscript.  Here  and  there  a  passage 
can  be  improved,  a  phrase  poUshed,  an  idea  ampU- 
fied  —  the  same  man  will  think  differently  at 
different  times;  and  lo,  here,  the  stupid  printer 
has  made  him  speak  of  a  marine  landscape  when  he 
wrote  Maine  landscape !  (That  proof-reader  must 
be  disciplined.)  And  here  a  sentence  has  been 
left  out  which  he  wrote  on  the  back  of  his  copy 
and  has  been  skipped  by  compositor,  copy-holder, 
proof-reader,  and  reviser  alike !  Then  the  queries 
of  tiie  proof-reader  must  be  answered,  and  a  few 
commas  here  and  there  would  improve  things,  — 
and  so  he  proceeds  to  mark  up  his  proofs,  for 
all  of  which  corrections  he  has  to  pay  at  so  much 
per  hour  —  second  cause  of  war. 

The  proofs  are  now  returned  to  (he  printer  and 
corrected,  and  a  revi.se  (after  passing  through  the 
proof-reader's  hand.s)  sent   to   (hf  author,  which 

83 


THE  BUILDING  OF  A   BOOK 

process  may  be  repeated  ad  infinitum,  until  the 
author  gives  the  order  to  make  up  into  pages. 

The  type  is  now  handed  over  to  the  "make-up," 
and  inasmuch  as  his  work  must  be  carefully  revised 
by  the  proof-reader,  we  may  describe  it  here. 
Having  first  of  all  made  a  gauge  showing  the  size 
of  the  page  —  supposing  the  page  to  be  seven 
inches  deep,  he  will  cut  a  notch  in  a  thin  piece  of 
wood  showing  that  size  —  he  must  "cast  off"  or 
estimate  how  the  pages  are  going  to  "break." 
There  must  not  be  any  short  Unes,  or  "widows" 
as  the  printers  call  them,  —  that  is,  the  concluding 
lines  of  paragraphs  which  are  not  full  length,  — 
at  the  heads  of  pages.  The  first  line  of  a  paragraph 
should  not  appear  at  the  bottom  of  a  page  (but 
this  rule  is  more  honored  in  the  breach  than  the 
observance),  and  the  concluding  page  of  a  chapter 
should  not  be  less  than  one-quarter  page  in  length. 
These  difficulties  are  avoided  by  "saving"  a  Une 
here  and  there,  —  that  is,  where  the  last  line  of 
a  paragraph  consists  of  only  one  or  two  words, 
in  squeezing  them  into  the  Une  above,  or  by 
"making"  lines,  which  is  accompHshed  by  spread- 
ing long  lines  out  and  driving  one  or  two  words 
over.  Any  line  containing  one  word  only  at  the 
end  of  a  paragraph  ought  to  overlap  the  indention 
of  the  first  line  of  the  next  paragraph.  Such  a 
word  as  "is"  or  "it"  will  not  do  so  and  should 
be  turned  back  to  the  line  above.  Then  again, 
where  cuts  or  illustrations  are  inserted  in  the  text 

84 


PROOF-READING 

a  page  will  sometimes  break  in  the  middle  of  a  cut, 
wliich,  as  Euclid  says,  is  impossible,  therefore  the 
cut  must  be  moved,  sometimes  necessitating  slight 
alterations  in  the  text,  e.g.  ''The  following  illus- 
tration" must  be  altered  to  "The  illustration  on 
the  next  page,"  or  "The  illustration  above,"  as 
the  case  may  be.  And  here  we  may  remark  that 
all  cuts  or  illustrations  should  be  made  and  fur- 
nished to  the  printer  in  time  to  be  inserted  in  the 
first  proof.  The  writer  calls  to  mind  an  instance 
where  the  cuts  arrived  after  the  whole  book 
had  been  made  up  into  pages,  necessitating  a 
re-make-up  at  considerable  expense. 

Proofs  of  the  pages  being  furnished  to  the 
proof-reader,  he  first  of  all  compares  them  with  the 
author's  last  galley  proof  to  see  that  nothing  has 
been  omitted  (frequently  lines  fall  off  the  ends  of 
galleys),  that  they  are  in  due  sequence  and  "join 
up,"  and  that  the  author's  last  corrections  have 
been  made.  He  then  sees  to  the  pagination,  the 
running  heads  at  top  of  each  page,  antl  sees  that 
the  foot-notes  have  been  inserted  in  the  pages 
where  they  belong  and  verifies  the  reference  marks. 
The  author  will  probably  have  used  the  *  f  +  § 
and  they  will  have  been  so  set  up,  as  they  appeared 
on  each  page  of  the  original  manuscript.  But 
when  in  type  and  made  uf)  into  pages  they  will 
probably  fall  differently,  the  note  bearing  the 
§  mark  may  come  on  the  following  page  and  of 
course  must  bo  allorcrl  (o  :ui  *,  a  corresponding 

S.J 


THE  BUILDING  OF   A   BOOK 

change  being  made  in  the  text.  A  much  better 
plan  is  to  number  foot-notes  1,  2,  3  and  so  on,  when 
no  alteration  on  making-up  will  be  required. 

The  proof-reader  must  also  look  after  the 
"widows"  and  other  matters  before  mentioned. 
If  the  book  is  set  in  linotype,  the  make-up  will  have 
been  unable  to  make  these  changes.  He  will 
simply  allow  the  proper  space  and  the  changes 
required  will  be  marked  by  the  proof-reader  and 
a  number  of  pages  corrected  at  a  time.  This  is  a 
point  of  economy. 

All  corrections  having  been  made  and  revised, 
proofs  are  submitted  to  the  author  for  his  final 
approval.  The  author  may  find  it  advisable  to 
make  alterations  even  after  his  book  is  made  up 
into  pages,  necessitating  further  revises;  but 
everything  finally  being  in  order,  he  gives  the  order 
to  print  or  to  electrotype. 

If  the  pages  are  to  be  electrotyped  or  made  into 
plates,  they  are  "locked  up"  in  an  iron  frame 
called  a  "chase,"  two  or  four  together,  and  proofs 
are  given  to  the  proof-reader  for  a  final  reading. 

If  the  book  is  to  be  printed  from  the  type,  the 
pages  are  "imposed"  in  sheets  of  eight,  sixteen,  or 
thirty-two,  so  arranged  that  the  folios  will  be  in 
order  when  the  sheet  is  folded  up.  They  now 
make  what  is  called  a  "form,"  and  a  proof  of  this 
—  known  as  the  "stone  proof"  —  is  taken  for 
final  reading. 

The  proof-reader  now  reads  the  work  all  through, 
86 


PROOF-READING 

looking  carefully  to  the  spelling,  punctuation,  and 
grammar,  as  in  reading  "first  proof,"  and  more 
especially  looking  out  for  bad  or  imperfect  letters. 
If  many  corrections  have  been  made,  the  type  is 
very  apt  to  be  broken  and  the  spacing  between 
words  to  become  irregular.  All  imperfect  letters 
must  be  replaced  and  bad  spacing  rectified.  Then 
again,  commas,  hyphens,  periods,  and  thin  letters, 
such  as  /,  /,  or  t,  are  apt  to  slip  out  of  place  at  the 
ends  of  lines.  And  here  a  serious  source  of  error 
may  be  mentioned  which  can  be  found  out  only 
by  reading  the  whole  page  over.  In  type  set  on 
the  Unotype  machine  every  line  is  one  sohd  piece 
of  metal.  Any  correction  to  be  made  involves 
resetting  the  whole  line.  Now  the  compositor 
in  inserting  the  new  fine  is  very  apt  to  take  out 
a  line  beginning  with  the  same  word,  replacing  it 
with  the  new  one,  thus  making  a  very  serious 
blunder,  and  of  course  the  proof-reader  or  author 
who  sees  the  next  proof  has  no  intimation  that  the 
wrong  line  has  been  tampered  with.  On  reading 
the  page  over,  however,  it  will  b(;  noticed  that 
.something  is  wrong,  previous  proofs  can  be  re- 
ferred to,  and  the  mistake  reclified. 

The  proofs  liaving  been  finally  read,  revised,  and 
marked  O.  K.,  the  pages  are  sent  to  the  foundiy 
or  to  [)ress,  as  the  case  may  be. 

But  the  proof-reader  has  not  done  with  them  ycl. 
If  the  book  is  electrotyped,  the  plates  may  tuiii 
out  faulty;   sometimes  the  type  will  sink  in  places 

87 


THE  BUILDING   OF   A   BOOK 

under  the  enormous  pressure  applied  in  moulding. 
It  is  therefore  highly  advisable  that  proofs  should 
be  taken  of  the  plates  and  gone  over  for  imper- 
fections; this  may  save  valuable  time  later  when 
the  book  is  on  the  press.  Some  authors  don't 
mind  the  expense  of  making  changes  in  their  work 
even  after  the  pages  are  cast. 

The  proof-reader  only  takes  leave  of  the  book 
when  it  is  on  the  press  and  all  is  ready  to  go  ahead 
and  print.  A  sheet  is  submitted  to  him  which  he 
must  vise  for  bad  letters,  see  that  nothing  has 
fallen  out  in  transit  to  the  press-room,  and  that 
the  pressman  has  not  taken  out  any  cuts  to  under- 
lay and  reinserted  them  upside  down.  He  will 
also  verify  the  folios  again  (if  the  book  is  printed 
from  plates  this  will  be  the  first  opportunity  of 
doing  so)  and  see  that  the  pages  join  up  to  what 
has  gone  before.     Here  his  work  ends. 


88 


PAPER   MAKING 
By  Herbert  W.  !Mason 

The  word  "paper"  derives  its  name  from  the 
ancient  Greek  word  "papyrus,"  the  name  of  the 
material  used  in  ancient  times  for  wTiting  pur- 
poses, and  manufactured  by  the  Egyptians  from 
the  papyrus  plant,  and  which  was,  up  to  the  eighth 
century,  the  best-known  writing  material.  Prob- 
ably the  earliest  manufacturers  of  paper  were  the 
Chinese,  who  used  the  mulberry  tree  and  other 
like  plants  for  this  purpose,  and  may  be  called  the 
inventors  of  our  modern  paper  manufacturing,  as 
they  have  practised  the  art  of  paper  making  for 
almost  two  thousand  years. 

In  the  ordinary  book  papers  of  to-day  the  mate- 
rials used  are  largely  rags  and  wood  fibres.  "Es- 
parto," a  Spanish  grass,  is  used  in  England  to  a 
great  extent,  but  it  is  too  expensive  to  import  to 
this  country,  and  is,  therefore,  not  used  here. 
Many  other  materials  could  be  used  to  advantage, 
such  as  "bagasse,"  the  waste  material  of  sugar 
cane,  and  corn  stalks,  both  of  which  make  good 
book  paper;  also  hemp,  wild  clover,  and  other 
plants  which  have  a  good  fibre. 

S9 


THE  BUILDING   OF   A  BOOK 

Only  two  kinds  of  rags  are  used,  linen  and  cot- 
ton, of  both  of  which  there  are  several  grades. 
Linen  rags  make  a  very  strong  paper,  and  are 
mostly  used  in  manufacturing  fine  writing  papers, 
ledgers,  and  covers  for  books  where  strength  is 
necessary.  Cotton  rags  may  be  divided  into  three 
distinct  kinds,  whites,  blues,  and  colors,  and  these 
in  turn  are  subdivided  into  several  grades.  Most 
of  the  blue  rags  are  now  imported  from  Germany, 
Belgium,  and  France;  none  from  Japan  as  for- 
merly. The  wliites  and  colors  are  bought  in  this 
country. 

Wood  fibres  are  divided  into  two  classes,  the 
harder  woods,  such  as  spruce,  fir,  etc.,  and  the 
softer,  such  as  poplar,  cottonwood,  etc.  There 
are  three  ways  of  reducing  or  disintegrating  wood 
fibres:  first,  by  sulphurous  acid  or  bi-sulphite  of 
lime  fumes,  which  gives  the  name  "sulphite  fibre" ; 
second,  by  caustic  soda,  which  is  called  "soda 
fibre";  and  third,  by  grinding.  The  last  is  usually 
only  used  for  stock  in  very  low  gi'ades  of  paper, 
such  as  newspaper  and  wrapping  paper ;  it  is  rarely 
used  for  book  paper.  Many  persons  think  that  this 
ground  wood,  which  is  merely  spruce  ground  very 
fine  into  pulp,  is  used  in  book  papers;  but  if  it 
were,  the  paper  would  not  last  long,  and  would  al- 
most immediately  discolor  on  exposure  to  light  and 
air.  There  is  a  theory  that  no  paper  made  from 
wood  fibres  is  lasting,  and  that  therefore  high 
grades  of  paper  for  fine  books  should  be  made 

90 


PAPER  MAKING 

only  of  rags,  but  this  is  erroneous,  for  wood  stock 
and  rag  stock  nowadays  are  treated  and  prepared 
in  the  same  way,  and  only  practically  pure  cellulose 
matter  goes  into  the  paper.  It  would  be  a  dif- 
ferent matter,  however,  if  ground  wood  were  used 
for  fine  papers,  for  in  this  stock  the  cellulose  matter 
is  not  separated. 

Rags  are  usually  purchased  by  the  paper  manu- 
facturer in  solid  bales,  which  have  been  graded 
into  whites,  blues,  or  colors.  After  being  opened, 
they  are  thrown  into  a  thrashing  machine,  which 
thrashes  and  shakes  out  the  greater  part  of 
the  loose  dust  and  dirt.  Later,  they  arc  sorted 
more  carefully  by  hand  into  several  grades,  accord- 
ing to  their  colors  and  cleanUness.  All  the  wool- 
lens, gunny,  buttons,  hooks  and  eyes,  silks,  and 
foreign  materials  are  thrown  aside.  As  the  rags 
are  usually  too  large  to  be  thrown  into  the  boilers 
to  be  cooked,  they  are  cut  into  very  small  pieces 
by  means  of  sharp  revolving  knives,  to  which  they 
arc  fed  rapidly  from  an  endless  belt.  When  cut, 
they  are  packed  into  a  revolving  kettle  or  boiler, 
called  a  "rotary,"  and  cooked  witii  caustic  soda 
and  lime  for  several  hours,  to  disintegrate  the 
fibres,  separate  the  celhilose  matter,  and  "start" 
the  colors.  The  rags,  after  coming  out  of  the  boiler, 
look  very  dark,  and  are  all  mashed  together.  They 
are  then  thrown  into  a  tub  of  water  and  revolved 
horizontally  by  means  of  a  large  wheel  fitted  with 
radial   knives,  which  tear  and  bruise  them  while 

'Jl 


THE  BUILDING  OF  A  BOOK 

water  continually  runs  in  and  out,  carrying  away 
the  dirt.  In  a  few  hours  the  rags  look  much 
cleaner,  and  a  small  amount  of  chlorate  of  Ume 
and  sulphuric  acid  is  run  in  to  bleach  them  white. 
After  having  been  thoroughly  stirred  for  a  while, 
the  stock  is  run  into  what  is  called  a  drainer,  where 
it  is  allowed  to  stand  for  several  hours  to  drain  off 
as  much  water  as  possible.  Liquid  chloride  of 
lime,  which  is  used  for  bleaching,  and  sulphuric 
acid  is  then  run  over  the  fibre,  which  in  turn  is 
drained  and  washed  off  again.  By  this  time  the 
pulp  is  white  enough  to  be  sent  to  the  beaters,  to 
be  prepared  for  the  paper  machines,  and  is  called 
"half-stock." 

Wood  fibres  for  book  papers  are  usually  treated 
in  the  same  general  way  as  rags.  First,  the  logs 
are  peeled  and  are  cut  into  suitable  lengths  to  be 
thrown  into  a  wood  chopper  and  cut  up  in  very 
small  pieces.  If  the  wood  is  treated  by  sulphurous 
acid  or  bi-sulphite  of  lime  fumes,  it  is  called  the 
"sulphite  process";  if  by  caustic  soda,  the  "soda 
process."  Tliis  wood  is  cooked  in  large  upright 
kettles  called  "digesters."  In  one  case  the  sulphite 
fumes  are  allowed  to  permeate  through  the  wood 
under  a  high  pressure,  and  in  the  other  the  caustic 
soda  is  put  in  "straight,"  and  the  wood  is  cooked 
under  a  high  pressure  of  steam.  This  is  done  to 
dissolve  out  all  the  gum  and  resins,  in  order  to 
leave  the  pure  cellulose  matter.  After  the  cook- 
ing is  done,  the  stock  has  to  be  bleached  in  very 

92 


PAPER  iMAKING 

much   the   same  way  as  the  rags   and  washed 
thoroughly  before  it  is  ready  for  the  "beaters." 

For  "beating,"  the  stock  is  thrown  into  a  large 
revolving  tub.  Rag  and  wood  fibre  may  be  mixed 
in  different  proportions,  according  to  the  grade  of 
the  paper  wanted.  The  stock  is  then  washed  a 
httle  to  be  sure  that  it  is  clean  and  white.  Water 
at  first  is  mixed  in  with  the  fibre  until  it  is  so  di- 
luted that  it  will  flow  freel}'';  then  it  is  beaten  for 
several  hours  by  means  of  an  iron  wheel  covered 
with  iron  or  steel  knives  about  one-quarter  of  an 
inch  thick,  which  revolves  over  an  iron  bed-plate 
with  similar  knives.  During  this  beating  process, 
clay  is  mixed  with  the  stock,  mainly  to  give  the 
paper  a  well-filled  and  better  appearance,  and  not, 
as  most  people  think,  to  add  weight,  although  this 
is  sometimes  an  object.  Sizing  material  is  also 
added,  which  helps  to  keep  the  fibres  together  and 
hold  the  ink  in  printing.  If  it  is  desired  to  give  the 
paper  a  white  shade,  a  small  amount  of  aniline  blue 
or  pink  is  mi.xed  in ;  otherwise  it  is  called  "natural" 
or  "unblued." 

The  boating  part  of  tlio  process  of  paper  making  is 
the  most  imiiortant.  The  stock  has  to  be  beaten  up 
so  that  all  the  fibres  are  separated  and  broken  into 
just  tho  right  lengths  according  to  the  weight  and 
strength  of  the  jjaper  to  be  made.  The  harder  the 
roll  is  set  down  on  the  bed  plate,  the  .shorter  the  fibre 
will  be  and  rice  versa,  but  if  the  roll  is  not  put  down 
hard,  the  stock  has  to  be  beaten  so  much  longer. 

93 


THE  BUILDING  OF   A  BOOK 

"Machining"  may  be  divided  into  five  pro- 
cesses :  — 

First.  When  the  stock  leaves  the  beater  it  is 
run  into  a  large  "stuff"  chest,  and  is  continually 
being  stirred  so  that  it  will  not  be  lumpy.  By  this 
time  the  pulp  is  about  as  clean  as  possible  and  is 
ready  for  the  paper  machines.  The  first  thing  to 
be  done  on  the  macliine  is  to  dilute  the  stock  with 
pure  water  to  the  consistency  of  buttermilk,  ac- 
cording to  the  thickness  of  the  paper  required. 
Then  this  liquid  stock  rims  through  what  are  called 
"sand  settlers,"  which  are  supposed  to  collect  what 
dirt,  iron,  etc.,  remain. 

Second.  From  the  sand  settlers  the  stock  runs 
on  to  a  screen,  through  which  it  is  drawn  by  means 
of  suction.  This  process  prevents  fibres  which  are 
lumpy  and  too  long  from  getting  on  to  the  ma- 
chine, and  allows  only  those  of  a  certain  size  and 
length  to  go  forward  to  be  made  into  paper.  An 
endless  and  very  fine  wire  cloth,  which  is  continu- 
ally moving  at  the  same  rate  of  speed  as  the  rest  of 
the  paper  machine,  takes  the  stock  after  it  has  been 
screened.  This  is  the  first  step  toward  making 
the  material  into  actual  paper.  Thick  rubber 
straps  on  each  side  of  the  wire  determine  the  width 
of  the  paper.  This  wire  shakes  a  Httle  in  order  to 
weave  the  fibres  together  while  in  a  state  of  sus- 
pension. At  this  period  the  stock  looks  Hke  thick 
cream,  but  soon  changes  its  appearance  to  the  form 
of  a  sheet  more  or  less  solid  on  coming  to  the  end 

94 


Jf/'T 


\r^ 


v?::'y.m. 


A^~<d)^ 


m 


PAPER  MAKING 

of  the  wire,  where  there  is  what  is  called  a  "  dandy," 
—  a  roll  covered  with  similar  wire  cloth  pressing 
lightly  on  the  paper  as  it  runs  along  the  wire.  De- 
signs in  relief  on  the  surface  of  this  roll  produce  the 
well-known  marks  called  "water  marks."  Just 
beyond  the  "dandy,"  underneath  the  wire,  is  a 
suction  box  which  draws  enough  of  the  water  out 
so  that  the  paper  can  go  through  the  "couch"  roll 
at  the  end  of  the  wire  without  being  crumbled. 

Third.  The  couch  roll  is  a  small  hard  roll  cov- 
ered with  a  thick  felt  called  a  "jacket,"  and  is 
used  on  the  paper  machine  to  prevent  the  paper 
from  being  crushed,  for  it  presses  out  much  of  the 
water  and  flattens  the  paper  so  that  it  will  pass 
from  the  wire  to  the  felts  without  breaking  and 
through  the  press  rolls  without  crushing.  From 
this  couch  roll  the  paper  leaves  the  wire  and  is  car- 
ried along  on  an  endless  woollen  felt  to  the  press 
To\h,  which  are  made  of  hard  rubber,  steel,  or  brass. 
These  rolls  press  the  fibres  together  well,  squeez- 
ing out  more  of  the  water  and  flattening  the  sheet. 

Fovrth.  From  the  press  felts  the  paper  is  car- 
ried to  the  "dryer  felts,"  which  in  turn  carry  the 
paper  to  the  "dryers,"  which  revolve  and  l)y  means 
of  the  felt  carry  the  paper  along  to  the  next  dryer, 
and  so  on.  The  dryors  are  hollow  iron  or  steel 
cylinders,  heated  by  means  of  the  exhaust  steam 
from  the  engines  wliich  run  the  machine.  More  or 
less  steam  is  allowed  to  run  into  the  dryers,  accord- 
ing to  the  f|uality  of  paper  being  made. 

95 


THE  BUILDING  OF   A   BOOK 

Fifth.  As  soon  as  the  paper  has  been  carried 
over  all  the  dryers,  during  which  time  it  becomes 
perfectly  dry,  it  is  run  through  a  set  of  so-called 
steel  "chilled  rolls,"  at  the  end  of  the  machine, 
which  are  under  pressure  and  which  give  the  paper 
a  fairly  smooth  surface  for  ordinary  type  printing. 
If  a  rough  surface  is  desired,  the  paper  is  simply 
wound  on  reels  from  the  dryers. 

Super-calendered  papers  are  those  which  have 
a  high  finish  and  smooth  surface,  and  are  used  for 
cuts,  lithographic  work,  magazine  papers,  and  ordi- 
nary illustrations.  To  calender  paper,  it  is  run 
through  a  series  of  alternate  "  chilled  "  and  "  paper  " 
rolls.  The  chilled  rolls  are  made  of  steel  and  have 
a  very  smooth  and  even  surface.  The  "  paper  " 
roll  is  made  of  circular  discs  of  thin,  but  strong 
manila  paper,  clamped  together  on  an  iron  shaft, 
and  then  put  under  hydraulic  pressure,  this  press- 
ure being  increased  constantly  until  it  reaches  one 
hundred  tons  of  pressure  to  the  inch.  The  rolls 
are  sometimes  kept  under  this  pressure  for  five  or 
six  weeks,  and  then  are  turned  on  a  lathe  into  a 
true  and  smooth  cylinder,  and  finally  burnished  by 
being  revolved  against  each  other. 

A  "  cotton  "  roll,  used  at  times  in  place  of  the 
"  paper  "  roll,  is  made  in  the  same  manner,  except 
it  is  made  of  pieces  of  cotton  cloth  instead  of  thin 
manila  paper.  There  is  a  heavy  pressure  on 
these  rolls,  and  the  paper  goes  through  at  a  high 
rate  of  speed.  When  an  especially  smooth  surface 
90 


PAPER  MAKING 

is  wanted,  steam  is  run  on  the  paper  as  it  un- 
winds, dampening  it  and  giving  the  web  a  surface 
like  that  on  ironed  linen. 

"Coated"  paper  is  treated  differently,  being 
covered  with  a  fine  coating,  which,  after  super- 
calendering,  gives  the  paper  a  glazed  and  smooth 
surface  for  fine  half-tone  illustrations.  Clay,  mixed 
with  casein,  the  product  of  skimmed  milk,  or  glue, 
is  the  chief  material  used  for  coating.  It  is  put 
on  the  paper  by  means  of  large  brushes.  Then  it  is 
dried  by  fans  and  passed  through  a  long  passageway 
heated  by  steam  to  a  high  temperature.  After  being 
reeled,  it  is  allowed  to  stand  for  a  while  to  harden ; 
then  is  run  several  times  through  the  calenders  to 
get  the  smooth  surface.  If  a  high,  glazed  finish  is 
necessary,  steam  is  put  on  while  running  through 
the  calenders.  This  gives  a  very  bright  surface 
for  fine  lithographic  work.  For  the  best  coated 
papers,  instead  of  clay,  sulphate  of  hme  and  some- 
times sulphate  of  barium  is  used,  with  glue  or 
casein.  Formaldehyde,  a  chemical  compound,  is 
used  to  prevent  decomposition  in  the  coating  ma- 
terials; and  soda  or  borax  is  used  to  "cut"  or  dis- 
solve the  casein  or  glue. 

If  the  paper  is  to  be  printed  "from  the  web,"  that 
is,  from  the  roll,  it  first  has  to  be  trinnned  to  the 
correct  width,  then  wound  tightly  under  a  high 
pressure  to  a  certain  thickness,  then  the  rolls  are 
packed  up  in  wrapping  paper  ready  to  be  shipped. 
Some  rolls  contain  as  much  as  five  miles  of  paper. 

97 


THE  BUILDING  OF  A  BOOK 

When  the  paper  is  to  be  put  up  in  sheets,  it  has  to 
be  cut  to  exactly  the  correct  width  and  length  on  the 
cutting  machine.  It  is  all  very  carefully  sorted  — 
the  imperfect  sheets  being  thrown  out  —  counted 
and  packed  in  wooden  cases,  or  done  up  with  strong 
wrapping  paper  in  bundles,  ready  to  be  sent  to  the 
printer. 


98 


PRESSWORK 

By  Walter  J.  Berwick 

Books  are  printed  in  "forms,"  or  sheets,  of 
four,  eight,  twelve,  twenty-four,  or  thirty-two 
pages  at  a  time,  the  number  being  determined  to 
a  great  extent  by  the  size  of  the  type  page  and 
by  the  class  of  the  work. 

An  ordinary  twelvemo  book,  without  illustra- 
tions in  the  text,  is  usually  printed  in  forms  of 
thirty-two  pages,  on  what  is  known  as  a  single- 
cylinder  flat-bed  press,  which  prints  only  one  side 
of  the  paper  at  an  impression.  For  large  editions, 
the  size  of  the  .sheet  of  paper  is  sometimes  doubled 
and  sixty-four  pages  printed  at  a  time.  The  class 
of  work  in  question  may  al.so  be  printed  on  per- 
fecting presses  which  print  both  sides  of  the  paper 
at  one  time,  and  in  this  way  as  many  as  one 
hundred  and  twenty-eiglit  pages  are  frcfiuently 
[)rinted  on  one  sheet,  there  being  sixty-four  pages 
on  each  side.  Large  editions  of  books  having 
small  pages,  such  as  small  Bibles,  arc  often  f)rinted 
two  hundred  and  fifty-six  pages  (one  hundred  and 
twenty-eight  on  each  side)  at  one  time. 

High  grade,  illustrated  books  are  always  printed 
00 


THE  BUILDING  OF  A   BOOK 

on  one  side  of  the  sheet  at  a  time,  the  reverse  side 
being  printed  after  the  first  impression  has  dried 
properly.  Thus  a  smooch,  or  "offset,"  the  result 
of  handling  the  paper  before  the  ink  has  become 
dry,  is  prevented. 

For  convenience,  I  shall  describe  the  process  of 
printing  a  book  from  electrotype  plates  on  a  press 
which  prints  thirty-two  pages  at  a  time  and  on 
only  one  side  of  the  paper. 

Before  ordering  his  paper,  the  publisher  must 
first  determine  the  size  of  the  paper  page  of  his 
proposed  book,  and  from  this  arrive  at  the  neces- 
sary size  of  the  sheets  of  paper.  He  must  also 
determine  the  thickness  of  the  paper  needed 
to  give  the  finished  book  its  proper  bulk. 

If  the  book  is  to  be  trimmed  on  top,  bottom,  and 
front,  about  one-eighth  of  an  inch  must  be  allowed 
on  top  and  front  for  the  binder  to  trim  off,  and 
about  one-fourth  of  an  inch  on  the  bottom.  The 
dimensions  from  back  to  front,  including  the 
amount  left  for  the  "trim,"  should  be  multiplied 
by  eight;  and  the  page  dimension  the  other  way, 
including  the  trim,  by  four.  This  would  give 
the  size  of  paper  needed.  As  an  illustration,  if 
the  trimmed  size  of  a  book  is  7|  x  5f  inches,  the 
paper  should  be  32x44  inches.  If  the  book  is 
printed  16  pages  at  a  time,  the  paper  should  be 
22  X  44;  and  if  64  pages  at  a  time.  44  x  64. 

The  quality  of  the  paper  and  the  size  of  the  sheet 
being  decided  upon,  and  the  number  of  pages 
100 


PRESSWORK 

known,  any  large  paper  house  can  tell  the  weight 
necessary  to  give  the  required  thickness  to  the 
book. 

On  receipt  of  the  printing  order,  with  directions 
as  to  whether  the  book  is  to  be  trimmed  or  not, 
the  printer  first  makes  up  what  is  called  a  "form" 
of  so-called  "patent"  blocks  on  which  the  stereo- 
type or  electrotype  plates  are  placed  during  the 
printing  of  the  book.  These  blocks  are  made  of 
wood  or  iron  planed  to  an  even  thickness  of  about 
three-fourths  of  an  inch,  so  that  when  an  electro- 
type plate  is  placed  upon  one,  it  vnW  take  only  a 
few  thicknesses  of  thin  paper  between  it  and  the 
electrotyped  page  to  make  the  whole  "type-high," 
that  is,  as  high  as  an  ordinary  piece  of  type. 

Two  adjacent  edges  of  these  blocks  are  bound 
with  strips  of  brass,  which  project  above  the  block 
anrl  are  turned  over  slightly,  so  as  to  receive  the 
two  bevelled  edges  of  the  electrotype  plate.  The 
other  two  edges  are  provided  with  movable  clamps, 
which  arc  screwed  tight  against  the  flat  edges  of 
the  electrotyi)e  plate  by  means  of  ratchets,  thus 
holding  the  plate  firmly  in  its  place. 

In  practice,  the  longer  of  the  two  l)rass-bound 
edges  is  called  the  "back"  of  the  block  and  tiie 
shorter  one  the  "head,"  the  other  long  edge  being 
known  as  the  "front"  and  the  other  short  edge, 
the  "foot."  These  terms,  as  a  matter  of  fact, 
originated  from  the  use  of  the  same  words  in  de- 
scribing the  printed  page  of  a  book,  the  "l)af'k'' 
101 


THE  BUILDING  OF  A   BOOK 

corresponding  with  the  side  of  the  page  next  to 
the  binding  of  the  book,  the  "head"  being  the  top 
of  the  book,  and  so  on. 

One-half  of  a  set  of  blocks  —  thirty-two  being 
a  set  in  this  case  —  are  made  with  the  backs  on 
the  left  and  one-half  with  the  backs  on  the  right 
edge  of  the  block.  The  common  way  is  to  place 
thirty-two  of  these  blocks,  in  four  rows  of  eight 
blocks  each,  in  a  "chase,"  or  iron  frame,  with  a 
cross-bar  in  the  centre.  Thus  sixteen  blocks  are 
on  each  side  of  the  cross-bar,  and  all  have  their 
backs  toward  it.  The  form  then  appears  hke 
this: — 


f             6z 

&z    £ 

9     lz 

o£     £ 

13     20 

21    12 

II   22 
— 1  rn 

19     14 

91     ll 

J'z     6 

01     fz 

Sji     Si 

'    JL^ 

r^  rn 

7     26 

31     2 

Strips  of  wood,  called  "furniture,"  are  then  used 
to  fill  up  the  spaces  between  the  blocks,  care  being 
taken  to  see  that  all  the  backs,  fronts,  and  heads 
102 


PRESSWORK 

are  in  uniform  positions.  As  some  people  prefer 
the  printed  pages  of  a  book  to  be  near  the  centre 
of  the  paper  pages,  while  others  like  the  head  and 
back  margins  to  be  much  narrower  than  the  mar- 
gins at  the  front  and  foot,  the  distances  between 
the  blocks  must  be  arranged  according  to  the 
taste  of  the  publisher  or  the  author. 

After  the  blocks  have  been  spaced  as  desired, 
and  the  spaces  filled  with  furniture,  the  form  is 
"locked  up,"  or  tightened  securely,  with  wedge- 
shaped  pieces  of  iron  called  "quoins,"  and  it  is 
then  placed  in  position  on  the  bed  of  the  press,  se- 
curely fastened  by  screw  clamps,  and  "making 
ready"  for  printing  is  begun. 

Notwithstanding  the  care  that  has  been  taken 
to  have  all  the  "  patent "  blocks  and  the  electro- 
type plates  of  even  and  uniform  thickness,  there 
is  almost  never  a  case  where  a  form  can  be  put  on 
the  press  and  printed  off  properly  without  consid- 
erable work  being  required  to  make  the  surface  of 
the  plates  absolutely  flat  so  that  the  entire  printed 
part  of  the  page  will  receive  the  same  amount  of 
ink  and  will  press  evenly  on  the  paper. 

The  first  step  in  making  a  press  "ready" 
is  to  place  a  sheet  of  heavy  cardiioard  around  the 
cylinder,  and  over  it  draw  a  smooth  piece  of  mus- 
lin or  cotton  cloth.  This  is  called  the  "packing." 
In  many  of  the  best  offices  this  sheet  of  heavy 
cardboard  is  not  used,  Ijut  in  its  place  is  a  patent 
make-ready  called  "Tympalyn." 
103 


THE   BUILDING  OF  A   BOOK 

Over  this  a  thick  sheet  of  manila  paper  is  shrunlv, 
it  being  pasted  under  clamps  on  the  front  of  the 
cylinder,  and  carried  around  and  fastened  to  hooks 
on  a  rod  on  the  back.  The  rod  is  then  turned  until 
the  sheet  is  perfectly  tight  and  smooth. 

While  the  pressman  is  laying  out  his  plates  the 
feeder  should  be  cutting  thin  sheets  of  paper  the 
size  of  one  of  the  plates.  Some  of  these  papers  are 
cut  about  one  inch  shorter  than  the  plates  for 
"bevels,"  and  these  are  pasted  on  the  middle  of  the 
full-size  pieces.  These  bevels  and  the  larger  "  blank ' ' 
sheets  are  to  go  between  the  plates  and  the  blocks 
to  overcome  any  variation  there  may  be  in  the 
thickness  and  to  make  the  surface  of  the  form  as 
nearly  level  as  possible.  The  "bevels"  raise  the 
centres  very  slightly  above  the  edges  of  the  plate, 
thus  reducing  the  pressure  of  the  cylinder  at  the 
points  of  contact  and  departure,  and  saving  the 
plates  from  wear. 

The  cylinder  being  properly  packed,  and  the 
form  of  blocks  fastened  on  the  press  so  that  the 
impression  of  the  form  will  come  in  the  middle  of 
the  paper  sheets,  it  is  necessary  to  know  whether 
the  binder  is  to  fold  the  sheets  by  hand  or  by 
machine,  and  if  the  latter,  what  kind  of  machine, 
as  different  ones  require  different  "imposition" 
or  arrangement  of  pages.  This  being  decided, 
the  plates  are  fastened  on  the  blocks  so  arranged 
that  when  the  sheet  is  cut  and  folded  the  pages 
of  the  book  will  run  consecutively.  Before  lev- 
104 


PRESSWORK 

clling  up  the  form  with  the  bevels  and  blank 
sheets,  the  plates  of  all  open  or  short  pages,  if  any, 
are  replaced  with  solid  pages,  as  these  sheets 
and  underlay  are  to  remain  through  the  printing  of 
all  the  forms  of  the  book.  The  rollers  are  now 
put  in  the  press  and  adjusted  to  just  touch  the 
inking  table,  the  ink  put  on  the  rollers  and  distrib- 
uted, and  one  impression  printed  on  one  of  several 
sheets  of  thin  paper  which  arc  run  through  the  press 
together.*  This  printed  sheet  is  then  turned  face 
down  by  the  pressman  and  any  unevenness  of  the 
impression  noted.  One  of  the  printed  pages  is 
taken  as  a  standard  and  by  removing  as  many 
pieces  of  the  thin  sheets  as  necessary  from  under 
the  plates  where  the  impression  is  too  heavy,  and 
by  adding  where  it  is  not  heavy  enough,  the  sur- 
face of  the  form  is  finally  "evened,"  or  made  as 
nearly  equal  as  possible. 

After  this  another  impression  is  taken,  and  of 
this  sheet  an  "underlay"  is  made  to  further  "even 
up"  the  form.  The  low  places  in  tlic  individual 
plates  are  carefully  marked  with  crayon  or  a  soft 
pencil  on  the  impression,  and  the  spots  so  marked 
arc  covered  with  a  piece  of  thin  pai)er.  The 
printed  pages  are  then  cut  out  a  little  larger  than  the 

'  If  one  sheet  of  paper  were  run  Uirounh  llie  i)ros.s  before 
"making  ready,"  it  would  not  receive  any  impression,  there 
being  a  space  equal  to  tlic  thickness  of  ten  sheets  of  paper  be- 
tween the  cylinder  and  the  surface  of  the  typo.  A  hunch  of 
six  or  eight  siipets  is  therefore  run  through  to  get  an  impression 
for  -'make-ready"  purposes. 

lor, 


THE  BUILDING  OF   A   BOOK 

type  page,  and  placed  under  the  plates  from  which 
they  were  printed.  The  plates  of  the  soUd  pages, 
which  had  been  substituted  for  the  open  pages, 
are  now  removed,  and  the  open  pages  are  put  back 
in  their  places  on  the  form. 

Up  to  this  point,  all  the  "making  ready"  which 
has  been  done,  is  of  permanent  use  in  printing 
all  of  the  forms  of  the  book  in  question.  The 
work  that  follows  has  to  be  done  on  each  form  as 
it  is  put  on  the  press. 

More  thin  sheets  of  paper  are  now  run  through 
the  press,  the  number  run  through  together  being 
one  less  than  were  printed  for  the  underlay. 
These  printed  sheets  are  used  for  ''overlays," 
which  are  very  nmch  like  an  underlay  except  that 
much  more  care  is  taken  in  marking  any  uneven 
places.  A  thinner  paper  is  used  to  bring  up  the 
low  places  in  the  plates.  An  impression  of  the 
form  is  then  made  on  the  manila  paper  sheet 
which  had,  as  before  mentioned,  been  drawn 
around  the  cyhnder,  and  on  this  printed  manila 
sheet  this  overlay  is  pasted,  the  impression  on  the 
manila  paper  being  a  guide  for  the  placing  of  the 
overlay. 

Another  overlay  is  now  made  in  the  same  way 
as  the  first;  only  it  will  now  be  found,  if  the  work 
has  been  properly  done,  that  there  will  be  only  a  few 
spots  to  be  covered  with  tissue.  After  this  overlay 
has  been  made  and  the  necessary  pieces  pasted 
over  the  first  one,  a  thin  sheet  of  manila  is  smoothly 
106 


PRESSWORK 

and  tightly  drawn  around  the  cyhnder,  covering 
completely  the  thick  manila  sheet  with  the  pasted 
overlays  on  it.    The  form  is  then  ready  to  print. 

While  the  feeder,  as  the  man  who  feeds  the  paper 
into  the  press  is  called,  has  been  "filling  in"  the 
overlay,  the  pressman  should  have  been  getting 
"register,"  —  that  is,  moving  the  plates  so  that 
the  headlines  and  the  sides  of  the  plates  align 
properly,  and  that  when  both  sides  of  the  paper 
have  been  printed,  the  pages  will  exactly  back  each 
other.  The  ink  fountain  should  also  have  been 
so  regulated  by  means  of  thumb-screws  that  the 
right  amount  of  ink  will  run  on  the  rollers  and 
be  distributed  evenly  over  the  form.  ^Miere  too 
much  ink  shows  on  the  printed  sheet,  the  thumb- 
screws on  the  fountain  are  tightened  a  little,  to 
decrease  the  flow,  and  where  not  enough  ink  shows 
the  thumb-screws  are  loosened  to  increase  its 
flow.  This  process  is  repeated  until  the  "color" 
is  all  right.  The  grippers,  which  seize  and  carry 
the  sheets  of  paper  through  the  press,  the  reels, 
cylinder  bands,  and  many  other  things  have  also 
to  be  adjusted.  These  cannot  well  be  described, 
but   have   to   be  learned    by  actual    experience. 

The  "making  ready"  and  watching  the  sheets  as 
they  come  from  the  press  to  see  that  the  "color" 
docs  not  vary,  is  the  skilful  part  of  tiie  process. 
The  feeding  can  be  done  by  a  bright  boy  after  a 
few  weeks'  experience,  but  is  now  done  automati- 
cally by  machines  to  a  great  extent. 
1U7 


THE  BUILDING  OF   A   BOOK 

While  the  press  was  being  made  ready,  another 
set  of  men  in  charge  of  the  paper  have  taken  it  out 
of  the  cases  or  bundles,  counted  out  the  nmnber 
of  sheets  required  for  each  form,  piled  it  on  hand 
trucks,  keeping  that  required  for  each  form  sepa- 
rate, and  have  delivered  it  to  the  press.  If  a 
machine  feeder  is  used,  the  paper  is  piled  on  the 
elevator  of  the  feeder,  from  which  it  is  automati- 
cally taken,  one  sheet  at  a  time,  and  delivered  on 
endless  tapes  to  gauges  on  the  feed  board  of  the 
press,  thus  bringing  every  sheet  in  the  same  posi- 
tion each  time.  The  number  of  sheets  required 
for  the  order  are  printed  from  one  form  on  one 
side  and  then  from  another  form  on  the  other 
side. 

From  the  preceding  it  can  be  seen  that  to  get  a 
press  ready  may  be  a  matter  of  hours,  while,  in  the 
case  of  ordinary  book  work,  a  press  generally  prints 
from  1200  to  2000  impressions  and  more  per  hour. 

The  principal  difference  between  making  ready 
a  form  on  a  flat-bed  perfecting  press  A\ith  two 
cylinders  and  on  a  single-cylinder  press  is  in  extra 
work  necessary  to  obtain  correct  registering  of 
the  plates  and  in  preventing  an  offset  of  the  fresh 
ink  on  the  second  cylinder.  Otherwise,  a  perfect- 
ing press  is  very  much  like  two  cylinder  presses 
joined  together.  It  has  two  sets  of  rollers,  two 
ink  fountains,  two  cylinders,  two  forms,  etc.,  but 
only  one  feed  board  and  one  delivery.  The  sheet 
is  fed  to  one  cylinder  and  printed,  taken  from  this 
108 


PRESSWORK 

cylinder  by  the  second  and  printed  on  the  second 
side,  and  delivered  on  the  "flyboard"  ready  to  go 
to  the  sliipping  department. 

The  process  of  making  ready  forms  containing 
illustrations  is  practically  the  same  as  for  plain 
ones,  except  that  a  new  underlay  is  made  for  each 
form,  and  much  more  care  and  skill  must  be  used 
on  the  cuts  themselves.  It  frequently  happens 
that  one  or  even  two  days  are  spent  making  ready  a 
form  of  half-tone  cuts,  before  the  actual  printing, 
which  takes  perhaps  half  a  day  to  do,  can  be  begun. 

In  most  offices,  a  special  "cut  overlay"  is  made 
for  forms  with  cuts,  or  illustrations.  The  cut 
is  placed  on  a  hand  press  before  the  form  is 
made  up,  and  proofs  on  four  different  thicknesses 
of  paper  are  made.  The  heaviest  paper  is  used 
as  a  bottom  sheet,  and  the  others  are  pasted  on  it. 
Out  of  the  next  to  the  thickest  paper  of  all,  the 
solid  blacks  are  cut  and  pasted  accurately  on  the 
same  places  on  the  bottom  sheet.  From  the  sec- 
ond or  next  thinner  sheet,  the  medium  shades 
including  the  solid  blacks  are  cut  and  pasted  on 
the  bottom  sheet,  thus  building  uj)  the  blacks  and 
strong  shadows.  From  the  thinnest  sheet  of  all, 
the  high  lights  and  very  light  shades  are  cut,  and 
the  rest  of  the  sheet  is  pasted  on  the  bottom  one. 
In  this  way  the  solid  blacks  and  dark  shadows  on 
the  cut  have  three  thicknesses  on  the  overlay ;  the 
next  shades  two,  and  the  light  shades  one,  where 
the  high  lights  are  cut  out  altogether.  This  is  the 
109 


THE  BUILDING  OF   A  BOOK 

common  form  of  "cut  overlay"  used  in  most 
offices ;  but  there  are  many  other  kinds,  some  being 
made  on  metal  by  chemical  action.  All  kinds  are 
fastened  carefully  over  the  impression  of  the  cut 
made  on  the  heavy  manila  sheet  covering  the  cyl- 
inder, and  the  cut  must  not  be  moved  on  the 
form  after  the  overlay  has  been  fastened  on  the 
cyUnder,  or  the  effect  of  all  the  work  will  be  en- 
tirely lost. 

One  of  the  great  troubles  which  the  printer  has 
to  contend  with,  is  electricity  in  the  paper.  The 
pressman  is  unaware  of  its  presence  until  he  lifts 
a  printed  sheet  from  the  pile  and  receives  a  slight 
shock,  and  finds  the  sheets  stick  together.  In  the 
case  of  a  cut  form,  the  ink  is  almost  sure  to  be 
offset,  and  in  printing  the  second  side  of  the  paper 
the  feeder  will  have  to  stop  frequently  to  separate 
the  sheets.  Much  money  has  been  spent  and 
many  devices  originated  to  overcome  this  trouble. 
Ink  manufacturers  make  a  liquid  preparation  to  be 
applied  to  the  packing.  A  row  of  hghted  gas-jets 
placed  near  the  point  where  the  sheet  goes  on  to  the 
"  flyboard, "  a  heated  steam-pipe,  and  many  other 
things  have  been  used,  but  a  new  device  by  which 
electricity  is  generated  and  carried  into  the  press, 
and  there  neutralizes  the  electricity  in  the  paper, 
is  the  best  of  them  all. 

The  printed  sheets  are  counted  automatically 
by  the  press,  and  as  fast  as  enough  accumulate, 
they  are  piled  on  hand  trucks  and  removed  to  the 
110 


PRESSWORK 

shipping  room.  Here  they  are  "jogged  up"  so 
that  the  edges  are  even  and  are  counted  again  by 
hand.  If  they  are  to  be  shipped  away,  they  are 
tied  up  in  bundles  or  nailed  in  cases  and  marked 
for  shipment.  If  the  bindery  is  connected  with  the 
pressroom,  they  are  simply  jogged,  counted,  and 
piled  on  trucks  and  delivered  in  this  way. 


HI 


THE   PRINTING   PRESS 

By  Otto  L.  Raabe 

Throughout  the  stages  of  development  of  the 
book-printing  press  the  chief  object  has  been  to 
lessen  the  cost  of  printing.  AVhether  the  direct 
purpose  of  an  improvement  has  been  to  increase 
the  working  speed  of  the  press,  to  lessen  the  neces- 
sary operating  power,  to  simplify  the  mechanism, 
to  strengthen  the  parts,  to  lighten  the  pressman's 
labor,  or  to  better  the  quality  of  printing,  the  ulti- 
mate aim  has  always  been  the  same.  It  has  been 
the  constant  incentive  to  invention  and  the  stand- 
ard for  judging  the  adaptability  of  a  press. 

The  first  printing  press  was  the  "wooden  screw" 
press,  which  came  into  use  about  the  middle  of 
the  fifteenth  century,  and  was  built  upon  the  same 
mechanical  principle  as  the  linen  presses  in  the 
homes  of  the  well-to-do.  This  was  the  press  used 
by  Gutenberg. 

It  consisted  of  two  upright  timbers  held  together 
at  the  top  and  the  bottom  by  crosspieces  of  wood 
and  with  two  intermediate  cross-timbers.  One  of 
these  intermediate  cross-timbers  supported  a  wooden 
or  stone  "bed"  on  which  the  form  of  type  was 
112 


THE  PRINTING  PRESS 

placed,  and  through  the  other  passed  a  large 
wooden  screw,  the  lower  pomt  of  which  was  at- 
tached to  the  centre  of  a  flat,  wooden  plate,  called 
the  "platen."  The  lower  side  of  the  platen  was 
covered  with  a  soft  "packing"  or  "blanket"  of 
cloth.  After  the  type  had  been  inked,  a  sheet  of 
paper  was  laid  on  it.  This  paper  had  previously 
been  dampened  so  that  it  would  take  a  better 
impression  of  the  type.  The  screw  was  then  turned 
down  until  the  platen  pressed  the  paper  against 
the  inked  type,  and  produced  a  printed  sheet. 

The  form  of  type  was  incased  in  a  frame  called  a 
"coflfin."  These  coffins  and  the  type  within  them 
were  very  heavy,  but  they  had  to  be  lifted  in 
and  out  of  the  press  by  hand.  After  each  im- 
pression the  platen  was  screwed  upward  so  that 
the  sheet  of  paper  which  had  been  printed  could 
be  removed  and  hung  up  to  dry. 

This  simple  form  of  press  continued  in  use  with- 
out material  change  until  the  early  part  of  the 
seventeenth  century.  The  first  improvements  on 
it  came  about  1620,  and  consisted  of  a  device  for 
rolling  in  and  out  the  wooden  or  stone  bed  on 
which  the  type  rested  instead  of  lifting  it  by  hand, 
of  a  new  form  of  iron  hand-lever  for  turning  the 
screw,  and  of  an  iron  screw  in  place  of  the  wooden 
one.  These  were  the  inventions  of  William  Jan- 
son  Blaeuw,  a  printer  of  Amsterdam.  Hhieuw's 
press  was  introduced  into  England  and  used  there 
as  well  as  on  the  continent.  It  was  substantially 
11  :j 


THE  BUILDING  OF  A  BOOK 

the  same  press  as  that  on  which  Benjamin  Frank- 
Un  worked  when  in  London  in  1735. 

After  this  first  type  of  printing  press  had  been 
in  use  for  three  and  a  half  centuries,  a  much-im- 
proved form  was  invented  by  the  Earl  of  Stanhope 
in  1798.  The  frame  of  his  press  was  made  of  iron, 
cast  in  one  piece ;  the  bed,  the  impression  plate,  or 
"  platen, "and  the  other  large  parts  were  also  of  cast 
iron,  while  the  working  parts  were  of  iron,  steel, 
or  brass.  The  iron  impression  screw  was  retained, 
but  connected  to  it  was  a  combination  of  levers 
whereby  its  power  was  greatly  increased.  This 
enabled  the  printing  of  larger  forms  and  the  use  of 
a  thinner  and  harder  "packing,"  or  "tympan," 
between  the  platen  and  the  sheet  of  paper  to  be 
printed,  resulting  in  a  sharper  and  clearer  impres- 
sion. Much  less  exertion  was  required  to  work 
the  lever,  and  at  first,  on  this  account,  a  printer, 
who  was  accustomed  to  use  all  his  physical  force 
on  the  old  screw  press,  found  it  difficult  to  work 
on  the  new  one. 

This  improved  style  of  press  was  received  with 
so  much  favor  by  printers  that  several  persons  took 
up  its  manufacture,  and  competition  soon  reduced 
its  cost  and  brought  it  into  general  use  for  printing 
newspapers  as  well  as  books.  The  process  of 
printing  remained  about  the  same  as  in  the  earlier 
presses,  Tvvo  men  were  required  to  work  it. 
One  spread  the  ink  on  a  wooden  block,  rolling 
over  it  with  two  leather-covered  balls,  about  six 
114 


THE  PRINTING   PRESS 

inches  in  diameter,  stuffed  with  wool  or  horsehair, 
and  fastened  to  round  wooden  handles.  Hold- 
ing one  of  these  inking  balls  in  each  hand,  he  then 
rolled  one  upon  the  other  to  distribute  the  ink 
evenly  over  both  of  them,  and  applied  the  ink  to 
the  face  of  the  type  by  rocking  the  balls  over  it 
until  the  entire  form  was  inked.  While  this  was 
being  done,  the  other  man  was  placing  the  sheet  of 
l^aper  on  the  "tympan."  This  was  a  light  frame, 
in  two  parts,  really  forming  two  frames,  one  inside 
the  other,  and  iDoth  covered  with  parchment. 
There  was  a  woollen  or  felt  blanket  between  them, 
and  the  two  frames  were  held  together  by  hooks. 
The  outer  frame  was  hinged  at  its  lower  end  to  the 
outer  end  of  the  bed  of  the  press,  and  when  ready 
to  receive  the  paper,  it  stood  in  a  nearly  upright 
position  at  about  right  angles  to  the  bed.  On  the 
frame  were  two  or  four  pins,  upon  which  the  sheet 
of  paper  was  impaled. 

Attached  to  the  upper  end  of  the  inner  frame 
by  hinges  was  a  thin  and  narrow  frame,  called  the 
"friskot,"  of  the  same  length  and  width  as  the  inner 
tympan  frame.  This  frisket  was  covered  with 
strong  paper  in  which  were  oi)enings,  cut  a  little 
larger  than  the  size  of  the  pages  of  the  type-form. 
When  the  sheets  of  paper  had  been  [)lac'ed  uj)on 
the  tympan  frame,  the  frisket  was  folck'd  down 
upon  it,  and  the  two  were  then  turned  down  over 
the  form  of  type.  Tlie  bed  was  tlicn  "run  in" 
imder  the  platen  by  means  of  a  crank  at  the  side 
115 


THE  BUILDING  OF  A   BOOK 

of  the  press,  and  the  platen  was  screwed  down  to 
make  the  impression.  After  the  impression  had 
been  taken,  the  platen  was  screwed  up,  the  bed 
"run  out,"  the  tympan  frame  and  frisket  lifted, 
and  the  printed  sheet  taken  off. 

The  introduction  of  this  Stanhope  press  gave 
a  great  impetus  to  the  development  of  the  printing 
press  in  other  countries  as  well  as  in  England,  and 
many  varieties  were  devised  during  the  thirty  years 
following.  Although  as  early  as  1811  Koenig 
had  made  a  cylinder  press  which  had  proved  fairly 
successful,  the  better  grades  of  printing  could  be 
obtained  only  by  the  flat  pressure  of  the  hand- 
presses.  In  some  of  these  hand  presses,  the  platen, 
or  upper  impression  plate,  was  moved  into  position 
over  the  bed  and  remained  stationary  while  the 
bed  with  the  type-form  upon  it  was  forced  upward 
to  make  the  impression.  In  others,  the  platen  was 
hinged  to  the  bed,  but  in  all  of  them  the  mechan- 
ism was  complicated. 

The  "Columbian"  press,  devised  by  George 
Clymer,  of  Philadelphia,  in  1816,  gained  consider- 
able distinction  both  in  this  country  and  in  England, 
where  it  was  introduced  in  1818.  It  differed  from 
the  Stanhope  in  that  the  screw  was  dispensed  with, 
the  platen  being  depressed  by  a  combination  of 
levers  and  lifted  by  the  aid  of  a  weighted  balance- 
lever. 

The  reduction  of  the  hand-lever  movement  to 
its  simplest  and  most  powerful  form  is  now  seen 
116 


THE  PRINTING  PRESS 

in  the  Washington  hand  press,  devised  by  Samuel 
Rust,  of  New  York,  in  1827.  His  patent  was  later 
purchased  by  R.  Hoe  &  Co.,  who  made  nearly 
seven  thousand  of  these  presses  in  different  sizes  and 
still  make  many  of  a  greatly  strengthened  pattern 
for  taking  fine  proofs  from  photo-engraved  plates. 
Some  of  these  presses  made  before  1850  are  still 
in  use,  and  occasionally  one  hears  of  a  Washington 
hand  press  being  used  for  printing  ujwn  hand- 
made paper  an  edition  of  a  small  and  hmited  num- 
ber of  copies  of  a  book.  Of  all  the  hand  presses,  this 
is  the  only  one  that  has  survived  to  the  present  day. 

With  the  introduction  of  other  means  for  apply- 
ing power  than  the  hand-lever,  a  distinction  came 
to  be  drawn  between  printing  presses  and  printing 
machines.  The  term  "machine"  might  i)erhaps 
be  more  appropriately  used  for  the  huge  printing 
presses  of  the  present  day,  yet,  as  the  first  essen- 
tial is  the  impression  power,  all  other  features  being 
subordinate,  the  term  "  press"  is  still  the  proper  one 
to  apf)ly,  even  to  the  greatest  combination  of  print- 
ing units  yet  devised. 

The  "bed  and  platen"  system  of  printing  as 
first  used  in  hand  presses  occupies  such  an  impor- 
tant place  in  the  history  of  the  book-printing  i)r('ss 
that  a  further  description  of  its  career  is  necessary. 

In  December,  1800,  r'riedricii  Koenig,  a  Saxon, 

who  later    gave  to  the  world   the  first  practical 

cylinder  press,  went   from  Germany   to   Juigland 

to  seek  assistance  in  carrying  out  his  plans  for  the 

117 


THE  BUILDING  OF  A  BOOK 

construction  of  a  greatly  improved  printing  press, 
having  failed  in  his  efforts  in  his  own  country  and 
in  Russia.  He  succeeded  in  enlisting  the  support 
of  Thomas  Bensley,  a  London  printer,  and  con- 
structed a  press  in  which  all  the  operations  but 
laying  on  and  taking  off  of  the  sheet  were  performed 
mechanically. 

An  accurate  description  of  this  press  is  not  extant, 
but  it  is  known  to  have  consisted  of  a  large  wooden 
frame,  a  platen  worked  by  a  vertical  screw  and 
gears,  a  type-bed  drawn  forward  and  backward  by 
means  of  straps  fastened  to  a  large  roller  under- 
neath the  bed,  a  tympan  frame  and  frisket  arranged 
to  open  and  close  automatically  with  the  move- 
ment of  the  bed,  and  an  inking  apparatus,  consist- 
ing of  an  ink-box  with  a  narrow  sht  in  the  bottom 
through  which  the  ink  was  forced  by  a  piston  upon 
a  roller  below,  from  which  it  was  transmitted  by 
two  intermediate  rollers  to  another  and  lower 
roller  which  inked  the  form  as  it  passed  underneath. 
The  two  intermediate  rollers  had  an  alternating, 
lateral  motion  which  spread  or  distributed  the  ink 
sideways  before  it  reached  the  lowest  roller. 

This  press  was  the  first  to  have  ink-distributing 
rollers  and  the  first  to  be  run  by  steam  power.  In 
April,  1811,  the  "Annual  Register"  for  1810  was 
printed  on  it  by  Mr.  Bensley  at  the  rate  of  eight 
hundred  impressions  an  hour.  Nothing  further 
is  recorded  about  this  press,  and  it  was  probably 
abandoned  as  being  too  complicated. 
1*18 


THE  PRINTING  PRESS 

In  the  following  year,  Kocnig's  first  cylinder  press 
was  completed,  to  be  followed  two  years  later  by 
an  improved  cylinder  press  made  for  the  London 
Times,  which  will  be  referred  to  farther  on. 

In  his  experiments,  the  Earl  of  Stanhope  had 
tried,  without  success,  to  find  a  substitute  for  inking- 
balls  by  making  rollers  covered  with  different  kinds 
of  skins.  He  also  tried  other  materials,  such  as 
cloth,  silk,  etc.,  but  the  unavoidable  seam  and  the 
impossibility  of  keeping  these  materials  soft  and 
pliable  defeated  his  purpose.  About  1813  inking- 
rollcrs  made  of  a  composition  of  glue  and  molasses 
came  into  general  use,  and  this  important  invention 
was  of  great  assistance  in  the  further  improvement 
of  the  printing  press. 

Other  cylinder  presses  with  mechanical  inking 
appUances  were  devised  and  patented,  the  most 
notable  of  which  were  those  of  Rutt,  Bacon,  Cow- 
per,  Applcgath,  and  Napier,  but  the  mechanical 
imperfections  of  these  presses  unfitted  them  for 
the  better  grades  of  book  printing. 

Further  efforts  were,  therefore,  directed  to  in- 
creasing the  output  of  the  bed  and  platen  presses 
by  the  application  of  improved  inking  devices, 
sheet-feeding,  and  impression  mechanisms.  About 
1825  there  was  constructed  by  I).  Napier,  a  ma- 
chinist in  London,  a  press  containing  sucli  appli- 
ances which  produced  six  to  seven  hundred  im- 
pressions an  hour.  Othor  f)resseH  constructed 
upon  the  same  princiijic,  but  with  two  type-beds, 
110 


THE  BUILDING  OF  A   BOOK 

two  sets  of  friskets,  two  inking  mechanisms  — 
and  only  one  platen,  in  the  centre  of  the  press  — 
were  made  by  Hopkinson  &  Cope  and  by  Napier, 
and  were  known  as  ''double  platen  machines," 
though  this  is  really  a  misnomer  as  there  was  only 
one  platen. 

Napier's  invention  achieved  the  greatest  popu- 
larity and  came  into  general  use.  At  each  end  of 
his  press  there  was  an  inking  device,  a  type-bed, 
and  a  frisket,  each  set  of  which  operated  alter- 
nately with  the  other,  but  either  could  be  made 
inoperative  if  the  "feeder,"  or  "layer-on,"  failed 
to  place  the  sheet  in  time.  Four  boys,  besides  the 
printer,  were  required  —  two  to  lay  on,  and  two 
to  take  off  the  sheets. 

^Vhen  the  type-bed  and  the  frisket  carrying  the 
sheet  of  paper  were  in  position  under  the  platen, 
the  latter  was  drawn  downward  to  make  the  im- 
pression by  means  of  a  "toggle"  joint  which  acted 
upon  two  strong  rods,  one  on  each  side,  and  was 
then  raised  again  by  a  counterbalance  weight. 
Owing  to  the  awkward  method  of  handling  the 
paper,  the  working  speed  of  the  press  was  necessarily 
slow,  and  the  size  of  the  sheets  limited  to  double 
royal,  or  25  x  40  inches. 

Tlie  best  presses  of  this  type  were  those  devised 
and  patented  by  Isaac  Adams,  of  Boston,  in  1830 
and  1836,  and  by  Otis  Tufts,  also  of  Boston,  in 
1834.  R.  Hoe  &  Co.,  of  New  York,  acquired 
Adams'  business  in  1858  and  continued  the  manu- 
120 


THE  PRINTING   PRESS 

facture  of  his  presses.  Over  one  thousand  in 
many  different  sizes  were  made  by  this  firm,  the 
largest  printing  a  sheet  33  x  46  inches  at  a  working 
speed  of  one  thousand  impressions  an  hour.  The 
last  Adams  press  was  made  in  1882,  but  quite  a 
number  are  still  in  use  in  prominent  printing-offices 
in  New  York,  Boston,  and  a  few  other  cities,  where 
the  results  on  fine  book  work  are  still  considered 
better  than  from  the  faster  cylinder  presses. 
The  mechanical  principle  employed  in  the  Adams 
press  for  exerting  a  flat,  parallel  pressure  has  now 
been  generally  adopted  for  heavy  stamping  and 
embossing  presses. 

To  go  back  to  the  early  part  of  the  nineteenth 
century,  when  Koenig  found  his  bed  and  platen 
|)ress  impracticable,  he  inmiediately  set  to  work, 
assisted  by  one  of  his  countrymen,  Andreas  Bauer, 
a  mechanic  who  had  helped  him  formerly,  and  in 
the  latter  part  of  1812,  the  first  flat-bed  cylinder 
press  was  erected  by  them  in  Bensley's  office. 
The  cylinder  of  this  press  had  three  im{)ression 
surfaces  witli  spaces  between  them,  and  each  cov- 
ered with  a  soft  blanket.  With  each  forward  move- 
ment of  the  type-bod  the  cylinder  made  oiie-(liird 
of  a  revolution  and  then  came  to  a  standstill,  while 
the  bed  returned  to  its  starting-point.  The  spaces 
between  the  impression  surfaces  allowed  the  tyjie- 
form  to  pass  under  the  cylinder  without  touching 
the  blankets.  At  the  end  of  the  cylinder  and  at 
equal  distances  along  its  circumference  were  hinged 
121 


THE  BUILDING  OF  A   BOOK 

three  frisket  frames,  each  fitted  with  tapes  having 
reel  springs  at  one  end.  The  frisket  frame  of  the 
uppermost  impression  surface  rested  in  a  vertically 
inclined  position  against  the  high  framework  of 
the  inking  mechanism.  The  sheet  of  paper  was 
placed  upon  the  blanket,  and  the  cylinder  then 
turned  forward,  drawing  the  frisket  frame  down 
with  it,  while  the  tapes,  kept  taut  by  the  reel 
springs,  adjusted  themselves  to  the  curvature  of 
the  cyhnder  and  held  the  sheet  upon  it.  After 
one-third  of  a  revolution,  the  cyhnder  came  to  a 
stop  to  let  the  type-bed  return.  On  the  next 
forward  movement  of  the  bed  and  the  next 
one-third  of  a  revolution  of  the  cylinder,  the  im- 
pression was  made,  and  on  the  next  repetition  of 
these  movements,  the  sheet  was  taken  off  by  hand, 
and  the  cylinder  returned  to  its  original  position 
to  have  another  sheet  placed  on  the  first  frisket. 
At  every  complete  revolution  of  the  cylinder  and 
three  complete  reciprocating  movements  of  the 
bed,  three  sheets  were  printed. 

The  inking  mechanism  was  similar  to  that  em- 
ployed on  the  bed  and  platen  press,  but  the  mechan- 
ism for  forcing  the  ink  through  the  slit  in  the  bot- 
tom of  the  fountain  was  improved.  The  inking- 
rollers  were  covered  with  leather  as  before.  The 
type-bed  was  moved  by  a  very  ingenious  mechan- 
ism which  is  in  use  even  at  the  present  time,  and 
is  described  farther  on,  when  the  two-revolution 
press  is  mentioned.  The  different  parts  were  not 
122 


THE  PRINTING   PRESS 

connected  with  each  other,  the  cylinder,  the  type- 
bed,  the  inking-rollers,  and  the  fountain  being 
operated  independently  by  separate  driving  mech- 
anisms. This  press  printed  eight  hundred  sheets 
an  hour,  on  one  side.  A  part  of  Clarkson's  "Life 
of  Wilham  Penn"was  printed  on  this  press,  and 
was  the  first  book  ever  printed  on  a  cylinder  press. 

Printers  and  publishers  were  sceptical  as  to 
the  practical  value  of  this  novel  invention,  but  Mr. 
John  Walter,  the  proprietor  of  the  London  Times, 
with  better  foresight  than  the  others,  and  needing 
increased  facilities  for  printing  his  paper,  con- 
tracted for  two  presses,  each  to  have  two  impres- 
sion cylinders.  These  were  constructed  for  him 
with  great  secrecy  in  a  building  adjoining  the  press- 
room of  the  Times,  and  on  November  28,  1814,  the 
entire  edition  of  that  paper  was  printed  on  them, 
—  the  first  cylinder  presses  driven  by  steam  power. 

The  mechanical  principles  were  the  same  as  in 
the  first  cylinder  press.  There  were  two  impres- 
sion cylinders,  but  only  one  type-bed,  and  the  latter 
had,  therefore,  to  travel  a  greater  distance  than  in 
the  single-cylinder  press.  This  made  it  impossible 
to  obtain  f|uite  dou})le  the  output  of  the  single- 
cylinder  press,  but  each  of  tliesc  new  presses  pro- 
duced eleven  limidrcd  im|)ressions  an  hour,  a  very 
respectable  performance  for  that  early  stage. 
The  threefold  motion  of  the  cylinders  was  retained, 
but  the  frisket  frames  were  displaced,  and  tapes 
running  over  rollers  and  underneath  the  cylinders 
12;i 


THE  BUILDING   OF  A   BOOK 

held  the  sheets  against  the  mipression  surfaces. 
An  improvement  was  also  made  in  the  inking 
mechanism  by  the  addition  of  an  intermediate 
roller  between  the  fountain  and  the  upper  dis- 
tributing cylinder  roller. 

The  next  step  in  advance  was  the  construction 
of  the  first  of  the  so-called  perfecting  presses,  which 
was  patented,  December  24,  1814,  and  erected  in 
Mr.  Bensley's  office  in  1815  or  1816.  Tliis  press 
had  two  type-beds  and  two  impression  cyhnders, 
one  of  each  near  either  end  of  the  press.  The 
cylinders  instead  of  having  a  threefold  motion 
revolved  continuously.  The  circumference  of  each 
corresponded  approximately  to  the  distance  trav- 
ersed by  one  of  the  beds.  The  part  of  the  cylinder 
which  made  the  impression  was  a  little  larger  in 
diameter  than  the  remainder,  the  low  portion  giving 
the  necessary  room  for  the  type-bed  to  return 
without  touching  it.  The  board  from  which  the 
sheets  were  "fed"  was  near  the  centre  of  the  press, 
and  at  the  top  adjoining  the  feed  board  was  an 
endless  belt  made  of  cloth  as  wide  as  the  board 
and  running  with  an  intermittent  motion  over 
two  rollers. 

The  sheet  of  paper  was  laid  upon  this  belt, 
which  then  moved  forward,  carrying  the  sheet 
between  the  tapes  and  leading  it  to  the  top  of, 
down  and  around,  the  first  cylindei-  where  it  re- 
ceived the  first  impression.  Thence  the  sheet 
was  conveyed  by  the  tapes  to  the  top  of  and  around 
124 


THE  PRINTING   PRESS 

the  second  impression  cylinder  and  was  printed  on 
the  reverse  side,  that  is  "perfected,"  and  it  was 
then  taken  from  the  lower  side  of  the  second  cylin- 
der by  hand  and  laid  upon  a  board  in  the  centre 
of  the  press,  between  the  two  impression  cylin- 
ders and  miderneath  the  feed  board.  This  press 
printed  both  sides  of  a  sheet  21  x  34l  inches  at 
a  speed  of  nine  hundred  to  one  thousand  an  hour. 

Shortly  afterward  a  single-cyUnder  press  was 
constructed  upon  the  same  principle,  the  fore- 
runner of  what  is  now  known  as  the  single  large  or 
drum  cylinder  press. 

Within  the  next  few  years,  Applegath  and  Cow- 
per  greatly  simplified  the  presses  in  the  Tunes 
and  in  Bensley's  office  by  removing  many  of  the 
gear  wheels.  They  also  invented  the  first  inking- 
table,  a  flat,  iron  plate  attached  to  the  type-bed 
which  enabled  the  rollers  to  distribute  the  ink 
more  evenly  than  before.  They  placed  rollers 
at  an  angle  across  the  ink-table  and  introduced 
the  revolving  roller  and  the  scraping  blade  in  the 
ink-fountahi. 

More  important,  however,  were  Napier's  inven- 
tions about  1.S24,  of  "grippers"  which  seized  the 
sheet  of  pajjer  at  its  front  edge  and  drew  it  from 
the  feed  board,  while  the  cylinder  was  in  motion, 
and  of  a  iriothod  of  altcniateiy  depressing  and  rais- 
ing the  impression  cylinders  on  the  forward  and 
backward  stroke  of  the  type-bed,  making  it  un- 
necessary to  have  a  part  of  the  cyHnders  of  smaller 
125 


THE  BUILDING  OF  A  BOOK 

diameter  than  the  rest  to  allow  the  type  to  pass 
under  it  as  the  bed  returned.  This  made  it  pos- 
sible to  use  cyhnders  of  a  smaller  diameter.  These 
improvements  were  first  embodied  in  a  perfecting 
press  made  for  Hansard,  a  London  printer. 

Although  a  number  of  presses  were  already 
being  operated  by  steam  power,  Hansard,  in  his 
description  of  the  Napier  bed  and  platen  press 
(the  "Nay-Peer,"  he  called  it)  finds  a  peculiar 
advantage  in  that  "it  supersedes  the  necessity  of 
steam  power,  as  the  motion  of  this  machine  is 
gained  by  two  men  turning  a  fly-wheel  which  acts 
as  the  impelling  power." 

I  have  described  the  development  of  the  printing 
press  up  to  this  state  with  considerable  detail, 
because  it  discloses  the  main  principles  of  the  book 
press  of  the  present  day.  During  the  first  quar- 
ter of  the  last  century,  the  manufacture  of  cyhnder 
presses  was  confined  to  England,  not  only  because 
London  was  then  the  leading  centre  of  civilization, 
but  because  nowhere  else  could  be  found  the 
mechanical  facilities  for  constructing  the  large 
metal  frames  and  parts.  Koenig  left  London  for 
his  native  land  in  1817,  dejected  by  the  treatment 
he  had  received  at  the  hands  of  Bensley,  both  in 
financial  matters  and  in  the  attempts  to  disparage 
his  achievements.  He  was  followed  two  years  later 
by  his  friend  Bauer,  and  together  they  founded  the 
firm  of  Koenig  &  Bauer  at  Oberzell,  where  it  still 
thrives  as  one  of  the  largest  factories  in  Germany. 
126 


THE  PRINTING  PRESS 

It  was  not  long,  however,  before  the  United 
States  took  the  lead  in  the  number  of  presses 
manufactured  as  well  as  in  their  improvement,  and 
the  present  high  state  of  efficiency  of  American 
presses  makes  them  models  which  are  copied 
in  all  other  countries.  These  improvements  and 
the  perfections  of  details  often  presented  problems 
which  were  more  difficult  to  solve  than  those  of  the 
earlier  inventors,  and  thousands  of  patents  have 
been  granted  to  Americans  for  new  and  ingenious 
devices. 

The  firm  of  R.  Hoe  &  Co.,  which  as  early 
as  1822  was  already  engaged  in  the  manufacture 
of  hand-presses  in  New  York,  commenced  about 
1832  to  manufacture  flat-bed  cylinder  presses, 
beginning  with  the  single  large  or  drum  cylinder 
press  which  was  followed  soon  afterward  by  the 
single  small  cylinder  and  the  double  small  cylinder 
press,  the  flat-bed  perfecting  press,  the  stop-cylin- 
der press,  the  two-revolution  press,  and  the  rotary 
book  press.  They  also  made  and  are  still  making 
large  newspaper  and  color  presses  which  are  used 
all  over  the  civiUzed  world,  but  of  these  we  will 
not  treat  here. 

As  stated  at  the  beginning  of  this  article  the 
chief  object  in  press  making  has  alwaj^s  been  to 
lessen  the  cost  of  printing,  but  after  increased  speed 
had  been  attained,  there  came  a  demand  for  a  press 
that  would  profliice  the  finest  quality  of  printing 
without  sacrificing  tiio  cjuantity  produced. 
127 


THE  BUILDING  OF  A   BOOK 

To  meet  this  no  press  has  ever  surpassed  the 
stop  cylinder.  It  has  been  made  in  several  differ- 
ent sizes,  the  largest  having  a  type-bed  45x65 
inches.  Resting  upon  and  attached  to  a  heavy 
iron  foundation  are  two  iron  side  frames  which  are 
securely  braced  together  by  an  upper  iron  frame, 
called  the  "rib."  This  upper  frame  contains  four 
tracks  faced  with  hard  steel,  on  which  run  a  series 
of  friction  rollers,  supporting  the  iron  type-bed. 
Attached  to  the  front  of  the  type-bed  is  an  iron 
plate,  called  the  ink-table,  its  surface  level  with  the 
surface  of  the  type-form  as  it  lies  upon  the  bed. 

At  the  front  of  the  press  is  the  ink-fountain  and 
a  number  of  steel  and  composition  rollers,  called 
the  "distributing  rollers."  The  ink  is  delivered 
a  little  at  a  time  from  the  fountain  to  the  revolving 
distributing  rollers,  and  from  them  to  the  ink-table 
which  moves  under  the  rollers  with  the  motion  of 
the  type-bed.  By  this  means  the  ink  is  distributed 
upon  the  entire  surface  of  the  ink-table  in  a  thin, 
even  film.  From  the  ink-table  the  ink  is  taken  by 
a  set  of  six  rollers,  called  the  "  form  rollers."  Rest- 
ing on  the  form  rollers  and  moving  in  contact  with 
them  are  additional  rollers  which  help  to  distribute 
the  ink  still  finer  before  it  reaches  the  type. 

The  impression  cylinder  is  located  at  a  distance 
from  the  front  of  the  press  of  about  two-thirds  of 
the  entire  length  of  the  press.  The  circumference 
of  the  cylinder  is  equal  to  the  distance  that  the 
type-bed  travels  in  one  direction.  When  the  type- 
128 


THE  PRINTING   PRESS 

bed  moves  from  the  front  to  the  rear,  the  cyhnder 
rotates  in  unison  with  it,  and  thus  the  cyhnder 
makes  one  revolution.  While  the  bed  returns  the 
cylinder  does  not  move. 

Near  the  rear  of  the  press  is  a  large  wooden  board 
extending  across  the  press  and  lying  in  a  slightly 
inclined  position  \\dth  its  lower  edge  almost  directly 
above  the  centre  of  the  impression  cylinder.  This 
is  the  "feed  board"  upon  which  the  sheets  of  paper 
lie  before  they  are  printed.  The  impression  cylin- 
der has  a  set  of  grippers,  and  when  the  cylinder  is 
at  rest,  these  grippers  are  close  to  the  edge  of  the 
feed  board  and  stand  open  to  receive  the  edge  of  the 
sheet  of  paper.  Extending  a  little  over  the  front 
of  the  feed  board  are  tw^o  gauges  against  which  the 
front  edge  of  the  sheet  of  paper  is  placed,  while 
one  side  edge  of  the  sheet  is  placed  against  a  gauge 
at  the  side  of  the  feed  board.  Just  an  instant 
before  the  cylinder  commences  to  rotate,  the  grip- 
pers seize  the  front  edge  of  the  sheet,  and  the  gauges 
lift  out  of  the  way.  The  cylinder  then  carries 
the  sheet  around,  meets  the  moving  inked  form, 
and  makes  the  impression.  Before  the  cylinder 
completes  its  revolution,  the  grippers  open  and 
release  the  sheet,  and  at  the  same  instant  anothei- 
set  of  grippers  on  an  adjoining  cylinder,  called 
the  "delivery  cylinder,"  seize  the  sheet.  From 
this  delivery  cylinder  the  sheet  runs  down  over 
a  set  of  strings,  and  is  lifted  off  the  strings  by  a 
sort  of  fan,  or  "sheet  flier,"  and  deposited  on  a 
120 


THE   BUILDING  OF  A   BOOK 

table  at  the  rear  of  the  press.  This  method  of  de- 
livering the  sheets  is  known  as  the  cylinder  or  rear 
delivery.  This  press  may  also  be  fitted  for  "front 
delivery."  By  this  method  the  sheet  of  paper  after 
being  printed  is  carried  around  on  the  impression 
cylinder  until  the  front  edge  comes  again  to  the 
feeding  point.  Just  as  the  impression  cylinder 
comes  to  a  stop,  a  set  of  grippers  seize  the  front 
edge  of  the  printed  sheet,  draw  it  over  and  away 
from  the  impression  cylinder,  and  deposit  it,  with 
the  printed  side  up,  upon  a  table  near  the  front  of 
the  press  and  above  the  ink-fountain  and  distribut- 
ing rollers. 

The  average  speed  of  one  of  these  presses  is  from 
one  thousand  to  fifteen  hundred  impressions  an  hour, 
depending  upon  the  desired  quality  of  the  work. 

Notwithstanding  the  excellent  qualities  of  the 
stop-cylinder  press,  commercial  necessities  often 
demand  a  sacrifice  of  quality  to  speed,  and  this  has 
brought  the  two-revolution  press  into  very  general 
use.  As  the  name  implies,  the  cylinder  makes  two 
revolutions,  one  to  print  the  sheet,  and  the  other, 
an  idle  one,  to  allow  the  bed  to  return.  While  the 
bed  is  returning,  the  impression  cyHnder  is  hfted 
to  clear  the  type-form.  As  the  cylinder  rotates 
continually  at  a  uniform  speed,  the  type-bed  must 
also  travel  at  a  constant  speed.  The  reversal  of 
the  movements  of  the  bed  must,  therefore,  take 
place  in  a  short  space  of  time. 

The  study  of  inventors  has  been  concentrated 
130 


THE  PRINTING   PRESS 

upon  this  subject  more  than  upon  any  other  con- 
nected with  flat-bed  presses,  and  hundreds  of 
patents  for  "bed  motions"  have  been  taken  out. 
Considering  the  fact  that  in  the  larger  presses  the 
weight  of  the  bed  and  form  is  about  one  and  a  half 
tons  and  that  this  weight  moving  at  a  speed  of 
about  six  feet  in  a  second  must  be  brought  to  a  full 
stop  and  put  into  motion  again  in  the  opposite 
direction  at  full  speed  in  about  one-quarter  of  a 
second,  it  is  obvious  that  the  problem  was  not  an 
easy  one,  especially  when  the  reversal  of  the  bed 
must  be  accompUshed  without  a  jar  or  \abration. 
The  mechanism  employed  has  always  been  a  driving 
gear  and  one  or  two  toothed  racks.  In  Koenig's 
original  movement,  the  driving  gear  on  the  end  of 
a  rising  and  falling  shaft  ran  on  top  of  a  rack  at- 
tached to  the  bottom  of  the  bed  in  order  to  drive 
the  bed  in  one  direction,  and  then  descending 
around  the  end  of  the  rack  ran  in  the  bottom  to 
the  same  rack  to  drive  the  bed  in  the  other  direction 
and  ascending  at  the  other  end  to  repeat  the  move- 
ment. This,  as  already  stated,  has  proven  a  very 
efficient  mechanism  and  is  employed,  with  improve- 
ments, by  some  of  the  press  manufacturers  of  the 
present  time. 

In  a  paniphlft  entitled  "A  Short  History  of 
the  Printing  Press"  (New  York,  1902),  by  Robert 
Hoe,  the  writer  describes  a  method  of  reversing  the 
bed.  Although  somewhat  technical,  it  seems 
desirable  to  quote  him  as  follows:  "As  early  as 
131 


THE  BUILDING  OF  A  BOOK 

1847,  Hoe  &  Co.  patented  an  entirely  new  bed-driv- 
ing mechanism.  To  a  hanger  fixed  on  the  lower 
side  of  the  bed  were  attached  two  racks  facing 
each  other,  but  not  in  the  same  vertical  plane, 
and  separated  by  a  distance  equal  to  the  diameter 
of  the  driving  wheel,  which  was  on  a  horizontal 
shaft  and  movable  sideways  so  as  to  engage  in 
either  one  or  other  of  the  racks.  By  this  means, 
a  uniform  movement  was  obtained  in  each  direc- 
tion. The  reversal  of  the  bed  was  accomplished 
by  a  roller  at  either  end  of  the  bed  entering  a  re- 
cess in  a  disc  on  the  driving  shaft,  which  in  a  half- 
revolution  brought  the  bed  to  a  stop  and  started 
it  in  the  opposite  direction.  This  involved  a 
new  principle;  a  crank  action  operating  directly 
upon  the  bed  from  a  shaft  having  a  fixed  centre, 
and  within  recent  years  modifications  of  this  patent 
have  been  successfully  employed  to  drive  the  type- 
bed  at  a  high  velocity  and  reverse  it  without  a 
shock  or  vibration." 

This  invention  appears  to  have  been  the  fore- 
runner of  the  more  recent  improvements  in  bed 
motions.  A  notable  one  is  that  employed  in  the 
Miehle  presses,  which  have  gained  much  celebrity, 
run  at  a  high  rate  of  speed,  and  are  used  in  many 
printing-offices  in  this  and  other  countries.  The 
reversal  of  the  bed  movement  is  accomphshed  by 
a  so-called  "true  crank"  movement  and  with  an 
absence  of  jar  and  vibration  never  before  obtained 
in  any  other  than  the  stop-cylinder  presses. 
132 


THE  PRINTING  PRESS 

At  the  present  time,  the  latest  development  in 
printing  presses  is  Hoe  &  Co.'s  new  two-revolution 
press,  in  which,  also,  the  reversal  of  the  bed  is 
accomplished  by  the  true  crank  movement,  but 
with  an  improvement  which  brings  it  to  an  easy 
stop  and  returns  it  without  the  least  vibration. 

On  all  two-revolution  presses  there  are  employed, 
to  assist  in  the  reversal  of  the  bed,  air-chambers 
or  cyhnders,  without  which  the  reversing  mechan- 
isms could  not  withstand  the  enormous  strain  to 
which  they  are  subjected.  These  are  iron  cylin- 
ders, closed  at  one  end,  approximately  six  inches 
in  diameter  and  eighteen  inches  long,  and  varying 
in  size  according  to  the  size  of  the  press.  Some 
presses  have  two  and  others  four  of  these  cylinders, 
one  or  two  at  each  end.  The  open  ends  of  the  cylin- 
ders are  towarrl  the  bed,  and  attached  to  the  bed 
are  two  or  four  pistons  which  enter  the  air-cham- 
bers as  the  bed  nears  the  end  of  its  stroke.  The 
compression  of  the  air  in  the  cylinders  makes  a 
cushion  and  checks  the  momentum  of  the  moving 
bed.  The  pistons  can  be  adjusted  to  regulate  the 
air  compression  to  suit  the  velocity  of  the  bed  and 
the  weight  of  (ho  form,  which  vary  in  different 
kinds  of  work. 

The  delivery  of  the  printed  sheets  is  performed 
either  by  a  drlivery  cylinder  or  by  a  front  delivery 
with  the  printed  side  of  the  paper  uppermost  as 
already  described  for  the  stop-cylinder  presses. 
Grippers  are  not  u.sed  in  the  front  delivery  carriage, 
133 


THE  BUILDING  OF  A   BOOK 

as  the  sheet  is  discharged  from  the  cylinder  by  its 
continuous  rotation. 

The  average  running  speed  of  a  two-revolution 
press  is  about  one-third  greater  than  that  of  a 
stop  cylinder,  or  about  eighteen  hundred  impres- 
sions an  hour,  as  against  from  one  thousand  to  thir- 
teen hundred  and  fifty  impressions  from  the  stop 
cylinder,  this  being  the  comparison  in  presses  of 
the  average  size,  printing  sheets  about  33x46 
inches.  The  driving  power  required  is  in  the  pro- 
portion of  about  five  for  the  two-revolution  press 
to  three  for  the  stop  cylinder,  and  the  wear  and  tear 
is  in  about  the  same  proportion. 

Another  press,  which  is  still  employed  to  a  small 
extent  for  book-work,  is  the  fiat-bed  perfecting 
press.  This  press  is  virtually  two  two-revolution 
presses  combined  into  one,  with  the  advantage 
that  they  require  only  one  man  as  "feeder,"  but 
with  the  disadvantage  that  they  produce  only 
about  two-thirds  as  much  work  as  two  separate 
single-cylinder,  two-revolution  presses.  Their 
greatest  disadvantage  lies  in  the  difficulty  of  pre- 
venting the  fresh  ink  on  the  side  of  the  sheet  first 
printed  from  "setting  off"  on  the  packing  of  the 
cylinder  which  prints  the  reverse  or  second  side. 
Mechanisms  are  employed  to  move  the  "  tympan 
sheet "  or  outside  covering  of  the  second  cylinder 
along  at  fixed  intervals,  but  they  are  complicated 
and  troublesome.  These  presses  are  expensive 
and  cumbersome,  and  can  generally  be  used 
134 


THE  PRINTING   PRESS 

only  for  inferior  grades  of  work  in  large  editions. 
Under  the  care  of  a  skilful  and  painstaking  press- 
man, good  work  can  be  produced  from  them,  but 
fine  book-work  is  always  done  on  stop-cylinder  and 
two-revolution,  single-cylinder  presses,  which  have 
now  been  brought  to  a  high  state  of  perfection. 

Nearly  a  hundred  years  ago  Hansard  wrote, 
"The  printing  machine  in  its  present  state  appears 
susceptible  of  Utile  improvement."  He  was,  in 
truth,  right  so  far  as  the  main  principles  of  the  flat- 
bed cyUnder  press  are  concerned,  but  there  have 
been  immense  improvements  in  many  of  the  de- 
tails. With  the  introduction  of  automatic  sheet- 
feeding  devices,  and  improvements  in  the  driving, 
inking,  and  delivery  arrangements,  mechanical 
ingenuity  seems  to  have  been  exhausted.  The 
temptation  is  strong  to  apply  Hansard's  prediction 
to  the  flat-bed  cylinder  press  of  the  present  day, 
but  with  the  many  surprises  that  meet  us  in  other 
fields  this  would  border  on  temerity. 

Already  there  have  been  great  advances  in 
adapting  the  entirely  rotary  i)rinciple  to  the  print- 
ing of  high-grade  work,  although  its  use  is  still 
restricted  to  the  [)ro(hiction  of  large  editions. 

As  early  as  1852  lloe  &  Co.  made  a  rotaiy  j)ress 
for  D.  Api)loton  &  Co.,  especially  for  printing 
the  famous  Webster  spelling-book.  The  types 
were  locked  up  on  the  cylinders  in  curved  beds, 
called  "turtles,"  and  the  sheets  were  delivered  by 
a  sheet-flier.  Probably  thirty  million  copies  were 
135 


THE   BUILDING  OF  A   BOOK 

printed  on  this  press,  which  was  dismantled  nearly 
twenty-six  years  ago. 

In  1886  this  same  concern  made  a  press  which 
is  still  used  for  printing  some  of  the  forms  of  the 
Century  Magazine.  This  press  had  two  pairs  of 
cylinders,  and  curved  electrotype  plates  were  used 
on  it.  The  paper  was  in  a  roll  at  one  end,  and  at 
the  other  end  there  were  delivered,  to  each  revolu- 
tion of  the  cylinders,  eight  eight-page  signatures 
already  folded  to  the  size  of  the  Century  page. 
This  was  the  first  rotary  press  made  for  a  good 
grade  of  book-work.  Two  similar  presses  were 
afterward  made  for  Harper's  Weekly  and  for  the 
Strand  Magazine  of  London. 

What  is  known  as  the  rotary  art  press  was  made 
in  1890  for  printing  the  fine  half-tone  illustrations 
in  the  Century  Magazine. 

This  has  one  plate  cyUnder  and  one  impression 
cylinder,  and  curved  electrotype  plates  are  used. 
The  sheets  are  "fed"  by  hand  in  the  usual  manner, 
and  are  printed  on  one  side  at  a  time  and  delivered 
by  a  sheet-flier.  It  produces  as  much  work  as 
four  flat-bed  cylinder  presses  and  of  better  quaUty. 
The  plates  are  inked  by  sixteen  rollers.  The  per- 
formance of  this  press  is  another  demonstration  of 
the  superiority  of  the  rotary  over  the  flat-bed 
principle  of  printing. 

Since  then  hundreds  of  rotary  presses  have  been 
made  for  magazine  and  book  printing,  most  of  them 
equipped  with  attachments  for  folding  the  sheets 
136 


THE  PRINTING  PRESS 

as  they  are  printed,  and  all  having  a  high  rate  of 
speed.  C.  B,  Cottrell  &  Co.  have  made  many 
rotary  presses  for  magazine  printing,  most  of  which 
deliver  the  sheets  flat,  without  folding,  and  most 
of  them  made  to  suit  some  predetermined  size  or 
sizes  of  sheets  or  pages. 

In  the  evolution  of  the  printing  press  there  are 
three  sharply  defined  stages :  first,  the  flat  impres- 
sion surface  and  the  flat  printing  surface,  requiring 
the  exertion  of  all  of  the  impressing  power  upon  the 
entire  surfaces ;  second,  the  cyUndrical  impression 
surface  and  the  flat  printing  surface,  requiring 
the  exertion  of  all  of  the  impressing  power  upon 
only  a  narrow  line  or  a  small  portion  of  the  printing 
surface;  third,  a  cylindrical  impression  surface 
and  a  cylindrical  printing  surface,  still  further 
reducing  the  area  upon  which  all  the  impressing 
power  is  exerted. 

Just  as  the  second  stage  has,  particularly  for 
book-work,  virtually  superseded  the  first,  so  the 
third  is  destined  to  supersede  the  second.  It  is 
only  an  adaptation  of  the  means  to  the  ends.  Tlie 
mechanical  principles  of  the  rotary  press  arc,  in 
fact,  simpler  than  those  of  the  flat-bed  cylinder 
press,  and  it  may  be  said  that  so  far  as  the  purely 
mechanical  part  of  the  press  is  concerned,  they 
have  been  fully  developed,  but  much  still  remains 
to  be  done  in  other  directions.  The  variety  in 
the  sizes  of  the  pages  of  difTerent  books,  tlie  small- 
ness  of  the  editions,  and  tlie  fact  that  the  liner 

137 


THE  BUILDING  OF  A   BOOK 

grades  of  paper,  especially  coated  paper,  cannot 
be  obtained  in  roll  form,  are  obstacles  to  be  re- 
moved. As  most  book  forms  are  electrotyped 
for  flat-bed  presses,  and  as  it  requires  but  little 
additional  expense  to  curve  the  plates,  this  one 
item  is  not  much  of  an  obstacle  to  overcome.  It 
is,  however,  still  difficult  to  curve  the  plates  per- 
fectly, and  the  pressmen,  even  if  they  can  produce 
excellent  work  from  flat-bed  presses,  require  con- 
siderable training  if  they  have  had  no  experience 
on  rotary  presses.  All  these  difficulties  are  sure 
to  be  overcome  in  time. 


138 


PRINTING   INK 

By  James  A.  Ullman 

The  process  of  making  printing  ink  consists  of 
grinding  a  pigment,  black,  white,  or  colored,  into 
a  suitable  varnish.  The  pigment  is  that  constitu- 
ent which  makes  the  impression  visible,  while  the 
varnish  is  the  veliicle  which  carries  the  pigment 
during  the  operation  of  grinding  and  during  its 
distribution  on  the  press  to  the  type,  from  the 
type  to  the  paper,  and  ultimately  binds  it  to  the 
paper. 

A  complete  factory  for  the  production  of  print- 
ing ink  consequently  consists  of  three  distinct 
plants,  —  one  for  the  production  of  the  varnishes, 
one  for  the  manufacture  of  the  pigments,  and  one 
for  the  grinding  of  the  pigments  into  the  varnishes. 

Roughly  speaking,  the  varnishes  are  divided 
into  three  classes,  the  first  and  second  of  which  are 
the  varnishes  proper,  i.e.  the  resin  and  the  linseed 
varnishes,  whih^  the  third  class  consists  of  dryers, 
etc.,  whose  purpose  is  to  influence  the  drying  and 
consistency  of  the  inks. 

Taking  up  first  the  proper  varnishes,  we  find 
that  these  arc  produced  by  the  destructive  distil- 
139 


THE  BUILDING  OF  A   BOOK 

lation  of  resin  in  huge  cast-iron  stills.  By  this 
process,  the  solid  resin  of  colophony  is  spht  up 
into  water,  various  resinic  acids  or  naphthas,  and 
resin  oils  of  various  specific  gravities  and  consist- 
encies, all  of  which  are  separated  from  each  other 
into  separate  containers  which  are  ready  to  receive 
them.  As  one  distillation  is  not  sufficient  to 
pm'ify  the  resin  oils  from  the  water  and  acid, 
which  would  not  only  give  the  resulting  ink  an 
obnoxious  odor  but  be  detrimental  to  type,  plates, 
etc.,  the  distillation  is  repeated  a  number  of  times 
until  the  oils  become  perfectly  pure.  The  grades 
of  varnishes  made  from  these  resin  oils  are  used 
for  the  cheaper  classes  of  printing  inks,  not  only 
on  account  of  their  lower  cost,  but  because  they 
are  more  suitable  for  the  class  of  work  for  which 
such  inks  are  used. 

The  Unseed  varnishes  are  made  by  boihng  re- 
fined Unseed  oils  at  a  very  high  temperature.  The 
Unseed  oil  loses  its  acrid  elements  by  volatiUza- 
tion,  and  gradually  becomes  thick  and  viscous,  the 
various  "  numbers  "  or  consistencies  of  these  var- 
nishes being  dependent  upon  the  length  of  time 
during  which  the  oil  is  subjected  to  the  process, 
and  to  the  temperature  appUed. 

The  dryers  are  made  by  adding  to  the  Unseed 
oil  during  the  boiUng,  suitable  oxidizing  agents, 
such  as  compounds  of  lead  or  manganese,  by  means 
of  which  the  oil  is  chemically  affected,  i.e.  it  is 
oxidized.  Such  dryers,  when  added  to  printing 
140 


PRINTING  INK 

ink,  attracts  the  oxygen  of  the  air  and  transfer  it 
by  catalytic  action  to  the  varnish  of  the  ink,  thus 
causing  it  to  oxidize  more  rapidly,  or  to  become, 
as  it  is  commonly  called,  dry. 

Having  disposed  of  the  manufacture  of  the  var- 
nishes and  dryers,  we  now  come  to  the  manufac- 
ture of  pigments.  This  is  such  a  large  field  that 
it  can  be  only  cursorily  covered  within  the  Hmits 
of  a  short  article.  The  pigments  are  of  many 
kinds  and  classes.  The  blacks  alone  would  form 
a  large  chapter  by  themselves;  yet  all  of  them 
consist  of  carbon,  ])roduccd  by  the  combustion  of 
hydrocarbons  of  various  kinds,  and  according  to 
their  origin  they  are  the  so-called  carbon  blacks, 
lamp  blacks,  spirit  blacks,  oil  blacks,  Frankfort 
blacks,  etc.,  each  of  which  has  its  distinct  and 
pecuUar  properties  and  value  for  its  specific  pur- 
pose. 

The  other  pigments  fall  naturally  into  two  divi- 
sions,—  chemical  colors  and  the  so-called  "lakes." 
The  chemical  colors  are  in  general  of  mineral  ori- 
gin, produc(!d  l)y  the  action  of  one  chemical  upon 
the  other,  or  in  some  cases  by  physical  or  chemical 
action  upon  earths  and  ores.  In  the  first  group, 
we  have  such  colors  as  vermilions,  white  load, 
chrome  yellows,  the  ferrocyanide  blues  (Milori 
blues,  bronze  blues,  Prussian  blues,  Chinese  blues, 
Antwerp  blues,  Paris  blues,  BerUn  blues),  ultra- 
marines, etc. ;  in  the  sf^cond  group,  such  colors  as 
cyanides,  umbers,  Indian  red,  and  many  others. 
Ml 


THE  BUILDING  OF  A  BOOK 

The  lakes  are  principally  formed  by  the  use  f 
coal-tar  derivatives,  and  are  usually  incorrectly 
grouped  as  aniUnes.  They  are  produced  by  pre- 
cipitating water-soluble  dyes  upon  a  suitable 
substratum  or  base.  Their  shades,  strength,  bril- 
liancy, permanency,  and  working  qualities  are 
dependent  upon  the  nature  of  the  dye  itself,  upon 
the  nature  and  percentage  of  the  substratum  or 
base,  and  also  upon  the  suitable  selection  and 
manipulation  of  the  precipitating  agents.  This 
class  of  colors  is  to-day  by  far  the  most  important 
of  all,  since  through  great  progress  made  in  chem- 
istry in  recent  years,  it  is  possible  to  make  them 
of  the  greatest  possible  strength  and  permanency, 
together  with  a  brilhancy  of  shade  which  was  for 
many  years  an  ideal  earnestly  striven  for,  but 
apparently  impossible  to  accomplish. 

Having  thus  considered  the  products  which  are 
the  principal  raw  materials  of  printing  ink,  we 
now  come  to  the  ink  itself.  Being  provided  with 
all  the  varnishes,  pigments,  dryers,  etc.,  of  suitable 
quaUties  and  shades,  it  is  necessary  to  combine 
them  in  proper  proportions,  after  selecting  such  as 
will  be  mutually  compatible,  and  to  grind  them  to 
the  utmost  fineness.  The  machinery  to  accom- 
plish this  purpose  consists,  first,  of  mixers,  in 
which  the  ingredients  are  thoroughly  incorporated 
with  each  other.  This  being  done,  the  resulting 
mixture  or  "pulp,"  as  it  is  called,  is  ground  upon 
mills  formed  of  rollers  or  cylinders,  which  are  set 
142 


PRINTING  INK 

in  close  contact  by  means  of  screws  and  made  to 
revolve  by  power.  Between  these  rollers  the  pulp 
is  passed  again  and  again,  the  number  of  times 
being  dependent  upon  the  consistency  of  the  ink 
and  the  nature  of  the  pigments,  until  it  is  ground 
or  comminuted  to  the  utmost  fineness.  The  re- 
sult is  printing  ink  as  it  is  known  to  the  printer, 
varying  in  consistency,  strength,  intensity,  perma- 
nency, brilliancy,  drying,  and  other  working 
qualities,  according  to  the  nature  of  the  various 
varnishes,  dryers,  and  pigments  with  which  it  is 
made. 


14?. 


THE  PRINTER'S   ROLLER 

Bv  Albert  S.  Burlingham 

Notwithstanding  the  fact  that  no  one  thing 
connected  with  the  art  of  printing  has  done  more 
toward  the  advancement  of  that  art  than  the 
simple  inking  apphance  famiharly  and  commonly- 
known  as  "the  printer's  roller,"  —  without  which, 
indeed,  the  evolution  of  the  power  printing  press 
from  the  primitive  hand  machines  of  the  fathers 
would  not  have  been  possible,  —  it  is  an  inexpli- 
cable truth  that  historians  and  encyclopaedia  makers 
who  have  made  investigation  of  the  origin  and 
progress  of  the  art  seem  to  have  attached  so  little 
of  importance  to  the  invention  or  introduction  of 
the  composition  roller  that  only  meagre  and  casual 
reference  is  made  to  it.  Even  its  predecessor, 
the  "ink-ball,"  receives  but  scant  courtesy  at  the 
hands  of  these  chroniclers,  for  while  they  enter 
into  the  minutest  detail  (and  properly  so)  in  inves- 
tigating as  to  whom  the  world  is  indebted  for  the 
idea  of  movable  types  and  the  invention  of  the 
printing  press,  they  have  not  thought  it  worth 
their  while  to  rescue  from  obUvion  the  suggester 
or  adapter  or  constructor  —  whatever  he  may 
144 


THE  PRINTER'S  ROLLER 

have  been  —  of  the  device  by  which  those  types 
were  inked  to  receive  the  impression  from  that 
press,  and  without  which  neither  types  nor  press 
would  have  been  of  any  avail. 

It  seems  to  be  estabhshed  beyond  doubt,  how- 
ever, that  the  first  suggestion  of  a  roller  to  take 
the  place  of  the  ink-balls  in  applying  ink  to  type 
forms  vas  that  of  William  Nicholson,  with  whom, 
also,  tiie  idea  of  the  cylinder  press  originated,  in 
1790.  He  recognized  the  fact  that  no  power 
press  on  the  cylinder  principle  could  be  of  prac- 
tical use  without  an  inking  apparatus  different 
from  the  primitive  ink-balls.  These  were  hol- 
lowed-out  blocks  of  beech,  mounted  with  a  handle, 
the  cavity  stuffed  with  wool  and  covered  with 
untanned  sheepskin  which  had  been  well  trodden 
until  it  was  soft  and  pliable. 

The  early  printing  presses  were  made  of  wood, 
and  two  men  were  rctjuired  to  work  a  press  — 
one  to  make  the  impressions  and  one  to  ink  the 
forms  with  the  balls.  The  ink  was  contained  in 
a  receptacle  called  the  ink-tal)le.  It  was  enclosed 
on  three  sides,  and  was  attached  firmly  to  one  post, 
or  cheek,  of  the  press,  on  which  were  the  racks 
for  holding  the  ink-balls  when  not  in  use.  A 
beechen  implement,  resfmbiing  somewhat  our 
potato  masher,  and  called  the  "braycr,"  was  used 
to  manipulate  the  ink  as  it  lay  on  the  table; 
an  iron  shovel,  known  as  the  "slicer,"  bring 
used  to  portion  out  from  the  mass  of  ink  such 
145 


THE   BUILDING   OF  A   BOOK 

quantities  as  were  needed  from  time  to  time  for 
the  brayer. 

It  required  much  strength  to  manipulate  the 
ink-balls  properly,  and  thus  it  was  a  man's  work. 
Taking  up  ink  with  them  from  the  table,  the 
operator  vigorously  beat  the  balls  together  with 
a  rolling  movement,  turning  them  a  Uttle  at  a 
time  so  as  to  make  the  ink  cover  the  entire  sur- 
face and  distribute  it  perfectly  thereon.  Then 
the  type-forms  were  beaten  with  them  until  they 
were  properly  inked.  The  work  of  printing  off 
an  edition  was  divided  between  the  two  men,  one 
manipulating  the  ink-balls  for  an  hour,  and  then 
taking  his  turn  at  the  press,  while  for  the  next 
hour  his  fellow-workman  attended  to  the  inking. 

WilUam  Nicholson,  seeing  at  once  that  the  idea 
of  a  cylinder  press  could  never  be  worked  out  to 
practical  perfection  with  such  a  process  of  inking 
as  that,  built  up  an  inking  roller  with  manifold 
layers  of  cloth,  which  he  covered  with  the  trodden 
sheep-pelt  surface  used  in  the  ink-balls,  the  dis- 
tribution of  the  ink  on  the  roller  to  be  made  by 
contact  with  a  revohdng  cyhnder  of  wood.  The 
idea  was  there,  but  that  it  would  have  had  the 
intended  result  was  never  known,  for  although 
Nicholson's  press  contained  nearly  all  the  prin- 
ciples on  which  the  cylinder  presses  of  our  day 
are  constructed,  it  lacked  one  vital  feature  — 
the  attaching  of  the  type-forms  to  the  cylinders 
—  and  was  consequently  not  of  any  practical  use, 
146 


THE  PRINTER'S  ROLLER 

The  Earl  of  Stanhope,  who,  in  1798,  invented 
the  first  iron  frame  and  "platen"  press,  with  the 
improvement  of  levers  in  addition  to  screws  to 
give  the  impression,  coupled  with  his  object 
Nicholson's  idea  of  an  inking  roller  or  revolving 
cylinder.  He  spent  large  sums  in  trying  to  find 
a  substance  that  he  could  utilize  for  that  purpose. 
He  investigated  with  the  skins  of  many  animals, 
domestic  and  wild,  and  tanned  and  dressed  in 
various  ways.  Different  textures  of  cloth  and 
varieties  of  silk  were  used,  but  without  success. 
The  seam  that  was  necessary  down  the  entire 
length  of  the  roller  was  one  great  impediment  to 
success,  and  even  if  that  could  have  been  over- 
come, the  proper  softness  and  pliability  of  surface 
for  receiving  and  depositing  the  ink  evenly  and 
smoothly  on  the  type  could  not  be  obtained  from 
any  of  the  processes  experimented  with;  and 
Stanhope's  improveiiiont  in  printing  presses  was 
still  subject  to  the  inconvenience  of  the  ancient 
ink-balls. 

In  1807  a  printer  named  Maxwell  made  a  sheep- 
skin roller  which  he  introduced  into  Philadelphia. 
It  failed  of  success,  and  the  printers  returned  to 
the  ink-balls.  This  Maxwell  roller  was  reintro- 
duced by  Fanshaw,  a  New  York  printer,  in  1815, 
but  the  printers  of  that  city  rejected  it. 

The  inventors  in  England  were  still  busily 
engaged  in  trying  to  solve  the  i)roblem  of  the 
cylinder    press    that    Nicholson    had    more    than 

147 


THE  BUILDING  OF  A  BOOK 

suggested  in  1790,  and  the  one  great  obstacle  to 
success  was  the  absence  of  a  proper  substance  for 
supplying  the  need  of  an  inking  roller,  the  diffi- 
culty of  the  type  and  cylinder  having  been  over- 
come by  the  invention  of  the  "turtle"  form.  In 
1813  a  man  whose  name  one  historian  gives  as 
B.  Foster,  another  as  T,  B.  Foster,  and  to  whom 
another  refers  as  "Forster,  an  ingenious  printer, 
employed  by  S.  Hamilton,  at  Weymouth,  Eng- 
land," one  day  visited  the  Staffordshire  pottery. 
In  a  coloring  process  in  use  there  Forster,  or  Fos- 
ter, noticed  a  peculiar  composition  that  covered 
the  sm'face  of  the  potter's  "dabber."  It  was 
moist,  pliable,  and  elastic.  The  historians  do 
not  say  so,  but  we  may  well  imagine  that  this 
"ingenious  printer,"  seeing  in  that  composition 
what  he  believed  to  be  the  long-sought  substance 
that  would  do  away  with  the  sheep  pelt  as  an 
inking  device,  with  all  that  implied  to  the  progress 
of  the  art  of  printing,  must  have  awaited  with 
feeUngs  of  acute  anxiety  the  answer  of  the  potter 
to  his  query  as  to  what  that  composition  was. 

And  what  was  it?  "Glue  and  treacle,"  —  two 
of  the  simplest  of  articles,  and  the  easiest  to  obtain. 
The  printer  experimented  with  them,  and  although 
he  was  the  first  to  put  to  practical  use  in  the  art 
of  printing  the  thing  that  revolutionized  it  and 
advanced  it  to  its  present  state  of  wonderful  per- 
fection, yet  so  far  as  the  printed  chronicle  of  him 
goes,  we  do  not  know  what  his  Christian  name  was, 
148 


THE  PRINTER'S  ROLLER 

or  whether  his  surname  was  Foster  or  Forster; 
and  one  chronicler  states  that  it  was  in  1813,  and 
another  that  it  was  in  1815,  that  he  discovered 
roller  composition  to  his  fellow-printers. 

The  collateral  evidence,  however,  is  to  the  effect 
that  it  was  in  1813.  Forster  (admitting  that  to 
have  been  his  name),  proved  the  availability  of 
glue  and  molasses  as  an  inking  surface,  not  by 
using  it  in  the  form  of  a  roller,  but  by  coating  a 
canvas  with  it,  and  using  the  canvas  thus  pre- 
pared in  place  of  the  sheep  pelt  on  inking  balls. 
From  this  the  press  inventors  got  the  idea  of  coat- 
ing a  wooden  cylinder  with  the  composition. 
■  Applegath  &  Cowper,  inventors  of  the  Applegath 
cylinder  press,  were  the  first  to  adapt  it  in  roller 
form,  and  for  a  time  held  a  patent  on  the  use  of 
it;  but  the  courts  of  England  decided  that  there 
could  be  no  patent  on  the  composition,  and  sub- 
stitutes for  the  manufacture  of  rollers  having  been 
devised  which  were  no  infringement  on  Apple- 
gath (^  Cowper's  moulds,  the  compound  came 
into  open  u.se,  and  Koonig,  who  had  so  improved 
and  perfected  Nicholson's  ideas  and  plans  for  a 
power  cylinder  press,  was  able,  in  1814,  by  the 
adaptation  of  the  glue  and  molass(\s  roller,  to 
print  the  first  edition  of  a  newspaper  that  was 
ever  run  from  a  rylinrlor  press  —  the  historic 
edition  of  The  London  Times.  The  problem  of 
the  inking  apparatus  solved,  there  was  no  longer 
any  limit  lo  tlm  exorcise  of  inventive  genius  in 
140 


THE   BUILDING  OF  A   BOOK 

the  advancement  of  the  printing  art;  and  it  is, 
therefore,  to  the  printer's  roller,  more  than  to 
any  one  thing,  that  that  art  owes  its  wonderful 
preeminence  to-day. 

There  is  no  record  in  any  of  the  histories  of 
printing,  or  in  encyclopaedias,  of  who  it  was  that 
introduced  the  composition  roller  into  use  in 
this  coimtry,  or  any  reference  to  the  date  when 
it  came  into  service.  De  Vinne,  in  his  "Typo- 
graphia,"  published  in  1876,  says  that  ink-balls 
were  in  use  here  "fifty  years  ago,"  or  in  1826; 
but  it  must  have  been  only  in  isolated  and  out- 
of-the-way  rural  printing  offices,  for  it  can  hardly 
be  supposed  that  Yankee  "  go-aheadativeness "  * 
would  have  failed  to  recognize  at  once  the  impor- 
tance of  the  discovery,  or  have  long  delayed  its 
general  adoption,  although  the  hand  press,  with 
many  improvements,  remained  the  universal 
printing  machine  in  the  United  States  until 
1822,  when  the  Treadwell  power  press  gave  the 
first  impulse  to  more  rapid  printing.  The  Tread- 
well  was  not  a  cylinder  press,  but  its  invention 
would  have  been  of  no  consequence  without  the 
composition  roller.  It  is  certain,  however,  that 
more  than  sixty  years  ago  the  melting  pot  and 
roller  mould  had  become  an  important  adjunct  to 
every  rural  printing  office,  and  the  making  of  a 
new  roller  was  an  event  in  the  routine  of  the  es- 
tablishment. The  orthodox  mixture  for  the  com- 
position in  the  printing  office  where  the  writer  of 
150 


THE  PRINTER'S  ROLLER 

this  was  the  ''dciil"  forty-seven  yeai's  ago  was 
"a  pint  of  sugar-house  molasses  to  every  pound 
of  the  best  glue,  with  a  tablcspoonful  of  tar  to 
every  three  pints  and  three  pounds."  And  that 
was  the  customary  composition  of  that  day  among 
coimtry  printers. 

There  is  a  tradition  among  printers  and  roller- 
makers  that  the  first  roller  turned  out  in  this  coun- 
try was  moulded  in  a  stove  pipe;  but  whether  it 
was  or  not,  and  no  matter  who  the  first  roller- 
maker  might  have  been,  it  is  a  fact  that  the  ad- 
vance in  the  art  of  roller-making  has  had  to  be 
rapid  in  order  to  keep  pace  with  the  vast  improve- 
ments in  the  cylinder  press  which  the  first  com- 
position called  into  use,  and  the  old-fashioned 
glue  and  molasses  rollers  would  be  now  of  no 
more  service  to  them  than  would  the  primitive 
ink-balls  which  the  roller  replaced.  A  comparison 
JK'tween  the  mode  of  making  a  roller  in  the  early 
days  of  the  business  and  the  methods  in  use  to- 
day will  be  of  interest. 

In  the  old  days  the  composition  was  cooked 
in  a  caldron  over  a  coal  firf,  with  water  between 
two  jackets  to  make  the  steam  that  forced  the 
melting.  The  cast-iron  moulds  were  placed  near 
a  stove  to  give  them  the  necessary  warmth  of 
inner  surface,  a  warm  mould  being  required  to 
give  a  good  "face"  to  the  roller  in  the  casting. 
While  rooking,  the  composition  was  constantly 
stirred  with  a  slick  to  assist  in  the  proper 
1.31 


THE  BUILDING  OF  A  BOOK 

assimilation  of  the  ingredients.  After  it  had 
reached  the  proper  stage,  it  was  strained  from  the 
melting  kettle  into  pouring  kettles,  similar  to  ordi- 
nary milk  pails.  The  composition  was  pom^ed  from 
the  top.  Naturally,  this  let  into  the  moulds,  with 
the  composition,  the  air  bubbles  and  froth  that 
were  always  present,  which  caused  imperfections 
in  the  rollers.  After  pouring,  it  was  necessary 
to  let  the  moulds  stand  all  night,  so  the  composition 
might  become  sufficiently  cool  to  permit  the 
"drawing"  of  the  rollers.  This  was  effected  by 
placing  a  stick  against  the  iron  journal  at  one 
end  of  the  roller  core  and  pushing  until  the  roller 
was  forced  out  of  the  mould. 

But  the  roller  factory  of  to-day  is  quite  a  differ- 
ent affair.  Instead  of  separate  moulds  standing 
about  a  stove  to  get  ready  for  the  pouring,  there 
are  moulds  in  nests,  or  cylinders,  resembling  a 
Gatling  gun,  or  a  tubular  boiler.  There  will 
perhaps  be  twenty  roller  moulds  in  a  nest.  The 
cylinders  are  balanced  in  the  centre  on  journals, 
thus  enabling  the  workman  to  place  them  at  any 
angle  desired,  for  purposes  of  oiling  the  moulds 
and  loading  them  with  the  roller  cores.  The 
cylinders  have  hot  and  cold  water  contact,  by 
which  they  may  be  surrounded  by  either  at  will. 
To  warm  the  moulds  the  cylinder  is  put  in  an  up- 
right position,  and  hot  water  circulated  about  it 
the  required  length   of  time. 

The  composition  —  which  is  something  more 
152 


THE  PRINTER'S  ROLLER 

than  the  old-time  glue  and  molasses  —  is  prepared 
for  pouring  by  melting  in  a  double- jacketed  steam 
kettle,  the  stirring  being  done  by  a  mixer  run  by 
steam  power.  "When  ready,  the  composition  is 
drawn  off  from  the  bottom  of  the  cooking  kettles 
into  pouring  kettles  which  have  air-tight  hoods. 
To  these  a  hose  is  attached,  the  other  end  of  the 
hose  being  connected  with  a  tank  which  is  charged 
with  air  by  a  pump.  Tlie  hose  being  then  attached 
to  the  cyhndcr,  the  air  is  introduced  from  the  tank 
into  the  pouring  kettle,  forcing  the  composition 
upward  into  the  cylinder,  and  all  air  from  the 
moulds.     This  insures  a  perfect  roller. 

When  the  composition  has  reached  the  top  of 
the  roller  stocks,  the  valve  at  the  bottom  of  the 
cylinder  is  closed,  and  the  process  is  continued 
to  the  next  cylinder  ready  for  pouring.  The 
cooling  of  the  cylinders  is  effected  by  turning  the 
cold  water  current  around  them,  and  a  nest  of 
moulds  may  be  filled  and  emptied  four  or  five  times 
a  day.  After  the  cooling,  the  bottom  plate  of 
the  cylin(l(!r  is  removed;  the  rollers  drop  out, 
are  trimmed,  and  are  ready  for  the  shipping  box. 


iyi 


THE   ILLUSTRATOR 
By  Charles  D.  Williams 

It  is  only  in  comparatively  modern  times  that  the 
art  of  illustration  has  received  the  encouragement 
that  makes  for  perfection.  For  this,  the  cheapen- 
ing of  the  manufactiu'ing  cost  in  printing  is  mainly 
responsible.  An  illustration  proper  should  always 
accompany  text  and  in  days  past  the  making  of 
a  book  was  so  costly  in  itself  that  the  possibihty 
of  illustration  was  almost  beyond  thought.  Only 
the  wealthy  could  afford  illustrated  books  and  as 
their  reading  was  very  limited,  naturally  illustra- 
tion was  crowded  to  the  wall.  Those  with  money 
to  spend  on  pictures  preferred  decorations  or  por- 
traits, consequently  the  endeavors  of  artists  were 
aimed  at  supplying  what  suited  the  tastes  of  buyers. 
Illustration  is  and  always  has  been  the  art  of  the 
people.  It  makes  clearer  to  the  imagination  their 
stories  and  their  songs,  it  mirrors  their  manner 
of  life,  interests,  and  pursuits  in  a  way  that 
brightens  what  would  otherwise  often  be  common- 
place. 

Art  seems  to  entwine  itself  about  the  strongest 
figures  in  a  community,  absorbing  with  its  nour- 
154 


THE  ILLUSTRATOR 

ishment  the  ethical  qualities  of  the  leader.  Tlius 
we  have  Michael  Angelo  in  a  community  ruled  by 
the  church,  creating,  at  its  demands,  a  "  Day  of 
Judgment,"  a  "Magdalen  at  the  Cross,"  a  "Moses," 
and  Velasquez,  evolving  a  marvellous  technique 
while  immortalizing  in  wonderful  portraits  the 
vanity  of  his  Spanish  lords. 

So  that  at  the  present  day,  with  the  people  in 
ascendenc}'',  what  is  more  probable  than  the  perfect 
development  of  the  art  which  most  appeals  to 
their  tastes?  Every  day,  artists  of  the  highest 
intelligence  find  in  illustration  an  opportunity  to 
give  the  best  that  is  in  them,  and  the  chances  that 
illustration  will  reach  the  heights  of  perfection 
attained  by  other  branches  of  art  are  exceedingly 
good. 

The  opportunities  for  an  illustrator  are  without 
end,  and  the  problems  are  beyond  number.  It 
is  a  difficult  performance  to  hand  out,  to  order, 
pictures  in  which  human  emotions  stand  counter- 
feited. In  the  fact  that  illustration  springs  from 
and  stands  with  the  written  tale  and  must  finally 
serve  its  proper  place  between  board  covers,  the 
man  who  labors  at  it  finds  some  of  his  work  already 
finisiicd  for  him  by  the  author.  Hut  it  is  a  saving 
that  tantalizes  more  than  it  assists. 

The    technical    equipujcnt    of    the    artist    must 

twist  into  realistic  semblance,   clear  to  the  eye, 

the  imaginary  product  of  the  author.     He  must 

not  add  to  it  nor  takf  away  from  it  —  even  for 

155 


THE  BUILDING  OF  A  BOOK 

the  sake  of  beauty  in  his  picture  —  one  iota  of 
the  facts  given  him.  His  imagination,  grasping 
all  the  ideas  of  the  author,  must  assemble  them  and 
find  a  place  for  each  one,  good,  bad,  and  indiffer- 
ent, and  present  them  to  the  reader  in  a  form  that 
will  command  his  approval. 

The  artist  cannot  tease  the  mind  with  the  vague 
influence  of  description,  as  can  the  author,  nor 
can  he  veil  his  products  with  the  pleasing  glamour 
of  unreality.  Without  haze  his  work  stands  forth, 
bold  facts  in  half-tone  reproduction  and  printer's 
ink,  fighting  an  uncertain  fight  at  best  with  the 
imagination  of  the  reader. 

People  will  have  illustrations,  though.  If  the 
pictures  do  not  literally  fill  the  bill,  they  never- 
theless please.  Something  definite,  carrying  a 
story  idea,  is  always  acceptable. 

Something  which  excites  the  imagination  in- 
variably challenges  interest,  and  the  illustrator 
who  is  true  to  his  calHng  and  above  shirking  his 
task  enhances  the  interesting  features  of  a  book  a 
thousand  fold,  if  he  spares  no  pains  in  arriving  at 
an  actual  expression  of  the  author's  intention. 

The  knowledge  that  an  illustrator  brings  to  his 
work  should  be  as  broad  and  varied  as  human 
history.  Above  and  beyond  his  ability  to  draw  or 
execute  in  a  manner  technically  pleasing,  should 
stand  his  knowledge  of  people,  places,  and  events. 
It  should  include  all  Things,  Ologies,  and  Isms. 
A  Uving  Index  he  must  be,  knowing  just  enough 
156 


THE  ILLUSTRATOR 

to  readily  discover  more,  and  with  this  knowledge 
he  must  make  others  feel  and  imagine. 

If  the  author  would  tell  of  wars,  Trojan,  Egyp- 
tian, or  Siamese,  the  illustrator  must  follow  him 
and  be  truthful.  He  must  know  enough  of  Troy, 
Egypt,  or  Siam  to  make  clear  to  the  reader  the  face, 
form,  and  clothes  of  the  characters,  their  weapons 
of  bloodshed,  their  way  of  kilUng,  how  they  marched 
to  do  it  and  through  what  manner  of  country. 
He  must  know  or  find  out  all  these  things,  and 
\Ndthin  all  his  pictures  must  carry  the  spirit  of 
terror  and  murder  that  stalked  at  the  time,  so 
carefully  expressed  that  the  terror  and  murder 
will  be  of  that  particular  epoch  and  no  other.  All 
this  must  be  shown  as  clearly  as  that  the  characters 
belong  to  their  helmets  or  shields,  their  war 
chariots  or  bamboo  lances.  Simple  the  task  may 
seem  in  these  days  of  public  libraries  and  ready 
reference,  yet  it  is  a  most  nerve-racking  business, 
this  placing  an  embossed  helm  or  set  of  greaves 
on  the  hero  of  a  story,  so  that  he  may  stand  out  a 
Roman,  and  when  the  labor  is  finished  having 
him  stare  genially  out  at  you,  insistently  proclaim- 
ing the  niasfiuerado,  and  seemingly  proud  of  his 
resemblance  to  a  St.  Louis  !)utton  salesman. 

When  all  is  said  and  done  the  illustrator's 
strongest  asset  is  spirit.  Technique  and  a  grain 
of  insight  will  help  a  man  over  many  a  rut  in  por- 
traiture, and  a  knowledge  of  patting  clay  and  using 
a  chisel  has  saved  many  a  sculptor,  but  technical 
157 


THE  BUILDING   OF  A   BOOK 

equipment  alone  never  made  an  illustrator,  because 
he  deals  too  directly  with  life  in  action.  Slack 
drawing  and  impatience  of  method  will  always  be 
pardoned  in  an  illustrator,  if  his  pictiu-e  convinces. 

Let  a  writer  tell  of  a  pair  in  love  and  the  illus- 
trator pictm'es  their  kiss ;  if  he  convinces  the  reader 
that  the  kiss  is  in  earnest,  the  drawing  may  be  full 
of  faults,  but  the  point  is  made  and  nothing  more 
is  asked,  save  that  "she"  be  pretty  and  "he" 
manly.  Consider  the  difficulty  of  this  trick  of 
convincing,  when  the  words  of  love  carefully 
weighed  and  prepared  by  the  author  and  set  into 
the  atmosphere  of  a  scene  equally  well  prepared 
will  often  occasion  derisive  smiles.  So  it  may  be 
explained  that  the  purpose  of  illustration  is  to 
carry  the  spirit  of  action  rather  than  to  serve  as  a 
basis  for  deft  expression  of  technical  skill,  and 
illustration  will  reach  its  highest  development 
along  the  fines  which  give  it  an  excuse  for  its 
existence. 

The  mechanical  processes  for  the  reproduction 
of  illustrations  have  served  to  develop  various 
methods  of  drawing  the  original  picture.  The 
half-tone  screen  in  connection  with  photography 
has  made  possible  an  almost  exact  copy  of  the 
artist's  work,  and  at  very  small  cost.  Formerly 
an  illustration  was  drawn  on  a  wood  block  and 
turned  over  to  a  wood  engraver,  wlio  laboriously 
cut  it  into  the  block  and  as  he  cut  away  the  draw- 
ing as  he  worked  it  was  impossible  to  compare 
158 


THE  ILLUSTRATOR 

his  reproduction  with  the  original.  It  can  be 
readily  seen  that  only  a  very  good  engraver  was  to 
be  trusted  to  reproduce  anything  of  value,  and  as 
there  were  never  very  many  engravers  of  the  first 
class,  artists'  work  usually  suffered.  Half-tone 
engraving  reproduces  a  drawing  by  photography 
and  necessarily  shows  much  of  the  individual 
method  of  the  artist.  Zinc  etching  of  pen-and-ink 
drawings  is  even  more  exact  in  its  results.  Lately, 
methods  of  reproducing  colored  originals  and  paint- 
ings have  been  brought  forward,  and  the  results 
are  surprisingly  good.  Scientific  photography  is 
at  the  bottom  of  this,  and  the  old  method  of  lithog- 
raphy, which  demanded  ten  or  twelve  printings 
in  reproduction,  and  then  fell  short,  seems  to  have 
seen  the  last  day  on  which  it  will  break  the  heart 
of  the  artist. 

Because  of  the  sun  and  the  dry  plate,  illustra- 
tors had  to  find  inks  and  methods  which  would 
aid  the  engraver  as  much  as  possible.  The  use 
of  opaque  wliite  as  a  ground  for  the  mixture  of 
tones,  with  its  resultant  bluish  cast  in  black-and- 
white  drawing,  has  almost  disappeared.  The 
camera  will  not  find  gradations  in  blue  and  artists 
have  found  it  better  to  use  pure  india  ink  washed 
out  in  water,  allowing  the  white  of  the  paper  to 
serve  for  high  lights.  Of  course,  opaque  has  its 
uses,  but  it  is  only  after  much  experience  and  many 
disappointments  that  an  artist  ran  learn  just  whero 
to  use  it  and  how.  Pen-and-ink  drawings  and 
].')0 


THE  BUILDING  OF  A   BOOK 

crayon  drawings  on  rough  paper  in  which  the 
crayon  is  applied  direct,  and  not  rubbed,  will 
always  please  the  engraver  most  and  return  the 
best  reproductions ;  but  in  this  case  cleverness  and 
technique  demand  the  greater  notice  from  the 
artist  if  he  would  have  the  result  interesting.  A 
successful  pen  drawing  is  an  achievement  almost 
equal  to  an  etching  and  it  is  unfortunate,  con- 
sidering the  ease  with  which  it  may  be  success- 
fully engraved,  that  good  pen  drawing  is  so 
rare. 

Black-and-white  oil  offers  an  inviting  field  to 
the  illustrator  who  aims  at  a  sense  of  completeness 
in  his  work.  Honestly  handled,  there  is  no  other 
method  of  working  that  can  convey  an  equal 
feehng  of  sohdity  and  earnestness.  By  its  use  an 
artist  can  suggest  all  the  quahties  of  a  full-color 
painting  and  impress  one  with  the  last-forever 
look  that  thought  and  study  gives  to  earnest 
work. 

Most  drawings  for  reproduction  are  worked  in 
wash  —  why,  it  is  hard  to  say.  Oil  will  shine  and 
reflect  Ughts,  and  the  engraver  has  this  to  overcome ; 
but,  barring  the  hghtness  and  appearance  of  ease 
that  wash  suggests,  there  is  no  very  apparent 
difference  in  the  reproductions,  and  oil  has  the 
advantage  of  greater  simphcity  in  detail. 

For  deftness  and  brilUancy  illustrations  finished 
in  crayon  rubbed  into  tones  easily  surpass  those 
done  by  other  methods,  but  the  process  has  the 
160 


THE  ILLUSTRATOR 

disadvantage  of  appearing  thin  in  the  reproduc- 
tion, unless  the  plate  is  very  carefully  tooled  and 
printed. 

Wlien  the  illustrator  has  chosen  his  subject  and 
decided  on  the  method  of  treatment  that  will  best 
serve  the  demands  of  the  story  to  be  pictured, 
fully  half  his  labor  is  completed. 

The  prehminary  sketches  necessary  to  the  con- 
densing of  his  ideas  open  the  door  to  the  real 
pleasure  in  his  work  —  standing  up  a  model  and 
creating  therefrom  a  character  is  pure  joy,  and 
it  is  for  this  alone  that  the  illustrator  toils  through 
the  dry  dust  of  reference  libraries  and  costume 
shops. 

Models  are  either  a  great  aid  or  a  great  draw- 
back in  the  picturing  of  characters,  for  while  they 
assist  the  artist  by  simplifying  the  labor  of  drawirig, 
they  often  handicap  him  by  intruding  their  own 
personality  into  the  work,  thereby  spoiling  the 
sense  of  character  aimed  at.  When  an  illustrator 
allows  this  to  happen,  it  does  not  matter  how 
beautiful  or  accurate  his  sketch  may  be,  he  fails  in 
the  first  cssoiitial  of  his  craft,  entering  forthwith 
into  the  field  occupied  Ijy  painters  and  decorators, 
who  can  do  the  same  thing  very  much  better. 
So,  while  the  model  is  often  a  necessary  app(Mulage 
to  the  construction  of  a  character,  it  is  imperative 
that  the  spirit  and  sense  spring  from  the  artist, 
whose  business  is,  not  to  reproduce  the  model,  but 
to  use  it  sparingly  as  he  would  a  book  of  reference. 
161 


THE  BUILDING  OF  A  BOOK 

The  illustrator  finds  that  the  speech  an  author 
puts  into  the  mouths  of  his  characters  is  the  best 
index  to  their  personality.  They  may  be  described 
as  tall  or  short,  dark  or  light,  stout  or  thin,  and 
their  creator  may  explain  their  capacities  for  love, 
hate,  villany,  or  dissipation,  but  it  is  only  the  words 
with  which  they  express  their  ideas  that  really 
describes  them.  His  description  of  the  beauty  of 
a  girl  will  not  be  accepted  on  trust.  He  must 
supply  her  with  deportment  and  breeding  before 
her  beauty  can  be  truly  imagined.  Thus  it  may 
be  explained  that  the  measure  of  an  author's 
conception  and  clearness  often  determines  the 
qualities  in  an  illustration.  The  true  illustrator 
is  sensitive  to  faults  in  the  delineation  of  charac- 
ter, and,  although  he  may  not  be  aware  of  it,  his 
work  will  show  it.  Of  course  it  often  happens 
that  an  artist  is  taken  up  with  ideas  of  technique 
and,  author  or  no  author,  wiL  make  his  pictures 
in  just  such  a  way;  but  such  work  is  hardly 
illustration  and  serves  itself  better  standing  alone. 

And  thus  it  goes  throughout  the  scene  to  be 
pictured  —  place,  time,  and  people,  all  must  be 
imagined  twice  and  equally  clear,  by  both  the 
author  and  the  illustrator,  before  the  reader  will 
agree. 

To  the  illustrator,  hampered  by  given  quantities, 
falls  the  most  difficult  task  in  this  duet  of  imagina- 
tion, and  he  can  at  best  hope  only  for  the  reader's 
approval,  as  all  credit  for  conception  goes  to  the 
162 


THE  ILLUSTRATOR 

author.  It  is  on  this  approval,  though,  that  he 
builds,  for  if  he  succeeds  in  making  things  clearer 
to  the  reader's  imagination,  he  has  accomplished 
what  he  set  out  to  do  and  has  proved  himself 
worth  his  hire. 

So  the  aims  of  illustration  are  set  forth,  but 
whether  the  laborer  completes  his  work  well  or 
ill,  whether  he  brings  great  ability  or  only  honest 
intention  to  its  accomphshment,  he  is  engaged 
in  a  business  as  fascinating  as  it  is  uncertain. 
Failure  only  drives  him  to  another  try,  and  success 
is  always  just  around  the  corner.  The  illustrator 
who  would  Uve  by  his  work  must  Uve  with  it.  If 
he  has  a  thought  in  his  mind  that  does  not  deal 
in  some  form  with  illustrations  and  half-tone 
plates,  he  is  wasting  that  thought  and  his  time 
besides. 


103 


HALF-TONE,    LINE,   AND   COLOR    PLATES 
By  Emlyn  M.  Gill 

Practically  all  book  illustrations,  as  well  as 
those  in  catalogues  and  periodicals  of  all  kinds,  are 
made  by  some  method  of  photo-engraving.  Wood 
engraving  is  almost  a  thing  of  the  past,  and  many 
who  are  in  a  position  to  know  predict  that  after 
the  present  generation  of  wood  engravers  has 
passed  out  of  existence,  artistic  wood  engraving 
will  be  a  lost  art.  It  is  certain  that  there  is  now 
no  younger  school  of  wood  engravers  growing  up 
to  take  the  place  of  the  engravers  whose  work  in 
the  leading  magazines,  up  to  a  few  years  ago,  made 
them  famous. 

The  quickly  made  and  comparatively  inexpen- 
sive process  plates  have  not  only  taken  the  place 
of  wood  engraving,  but  have  increased  the  field  of 
illustration  to  a  very  large  extent.  They  have 
made  possible  hundreds  and  even  thousands  of 
pubHcations  which  could  not  have  existed  in  the 
old  days  of  expensive  wood  engraving.  The  use 
of  photo-engraved  plates  has  increased  enormously 
each  year  during  the  past  twenty  years,  and  with 
this  increased  use  has  come  the  inevitable  decrease 
164 


HALF-TONE,   LINE,   AND  COLOR  PLATES 

in  cost,  so  that  illustrations  are  no  longer  much  of 
a  luxury  to  the  publisher. 

Photography  is  the  basis  of  all  the  mechanical 
processes  that  come  under  the  general  head  of 
photo-engraving.  These  processes  are  generally 
called  mechanical,  yet,  as  in  photography,  great 
skill  is  required  to  produce  the  best  results.  The 
higher  grades  of  half-tone  work  require  much 
careful  finishing,  which  is  all  done  by  hand,  and 
which,  moreover,  nmst  be  done  by  a  skilful,  intel- 
ligent, and  artistic  engraver.  Practically  all  things 
may  be  reproduced  successfully  by  photo-engrav- 
ing, but  the  vast  majority  of  subjects  that  go  to 
the  photo-engraver  are  either  photographs  or 
drawings. 

All  methods  of  reHcf  plate  photo-engraving  come 
under  two  general  heads:  "Half-tone"  and  "line 
engraving,"  the  latter  being  very  generally  known 
as  "zinc  etching."  Zinc  etching  is  the  simplest 
method  of  photo-engraving  and  should  be  thor- 
oughly understood  before  one  begins  to  inquire 
into  the  intricacies  of  the  half-tone  process.  It  is 
used  to  reproduce  what  is  known  as  "black  and 
wliite"  work,  or  linf  drawings.  Any  drawing  or 
j>rint  having  black  lines  or  dots  on  n  white  back- 
ground, without  any  middle  shades,  may  be  en- 
graved by  this  process.  The  old-fashioned  "wet- 
plate"  photography  is  used  in  making  practically 
all  process  plates,  either  in  line  or  half-tone. 

I  will  describe  })rieny  all  the  operations  gone 
Kir, 


THE  BUILDING  OF  A   BOOK 

through  in  making  a  line  plate,  taking  for  a  sub- 
ject a  map  drawn  in  black  ink  on  white  paper  or 
a  head  drawn  by  Charles  Dana  Gibson,  —  subjects 
wide  apart  in  an  artistic  way,  but  of  absolutely 
equal  values  so  far  as  making  the  plate  is  con- 
cerned. The  drawing  is  first  put  on  a  copy  board 
in  front  of  a  camera  made  especially  for  this  work, 
in  whose  holder  the  wet  plate  has  already  been 
placed  by  the  operator.  The  subject  may  be  en- 
larged or  reduced  to  any  desired  size,  nearly  all 
drawings  being  made  much  larger  than  they  are 
desired  to  be  reproduced  in  the  plates.  The  ex- 
posure is  much  longer  than  in  ordinary  dry  plate 
work,  generally  lasting  in  the  neighborhood  of  five 
minutes.  The  result  is  a  black  and  white  nega- 
tive. That  is,  the  Unes  that  were  black  in  the 
drawing  are  absolutely  clear  and  transparent  in 
the  negative,  but  the  rest  of  the  negative  is  black. 
From  the  photographer,  the  negative  goes  to  the 
"negative-turning"  room.  Here  the  negative  is 
coated  with  solutions  of  collodion  and  rubber  ce- 
ment, which  makes  the  film  exceedingly  tough  — 
so  tough  that  it  is  easily  stripped  from  the  glass 
on  which  it  was  made,  and  is  "turned"  with  the 
positive  side  up  on  another  sheet  of  glass.  If  this 
were  not  done,  the  plate  would  be  reversed  in 
printing  —  that  is,  a  Une  of  type  would  read  from 
right  to  left,  or  backward.  After  the  negative  is 
"turned,"  it  is  ready  for  the  etching  room.  Here 
the  surface  of  a  sheet  of  zinc  about  one-sixteenth 
166 


HALF-TONE,  LINE,   AND  COLOR  PLATES 

of  an  inch  thick,  which  has  been  poHshed  until  it 
is  as  smooth  as  plate  glass  and  without  a  scratch 
or  a  flaw  of  any  kind,  is  flowed  with  a  sensitized 
solution,  easily  affected  by  light.  The  negative  is 
placed  in  a  printing  frame  over  the  sensitized  zinc 
and  a  print  is  made.  That  is,  it  is  exposed  to  the 
sunlight  or  to  a  powerful  electric  hght,  and  the 
light  shines  through  the  transparent  parts  of  the 
negative,  and  hardens  the  sensitized  sm-face ;  while 
the  black  part  of  the  negative  protects  the  sensi- 
tized surface  from  the  action  of  the  light.  The 
plate  is  next  "rolled  up"  with  a  Uthograph  roller 
which  distributes  a  thin  coating  of  etching  ink  over 
the  entire  surface.  The  plate  is  then  washed  off 
carefully  by  the  operator,  but  the  ink  adheres  to 
all  portions  of  the  plate  that  have  been  acted  upon 
by  the  light.  We  now  have  a  fully  developed 
print  on  the  highly  polished  surface  of  the  zinc 
that  is  an  exact  reproduction  of  the  original  draw- 
ing. It  is  now  necessary  to  make  this  print  acid 
proof,  and  this  is  done  by  covering  the  plate  with 
a  coating  of  very  fine  resinous  powder,  called 
"dragon's  blood,"  which  adheres  to  the  prmted 
portions  of  the  plate.  The  plate  is  subjected  to 
enough  heat  to  melt  this  powder,  and  is  then  ready 
for  the  acid  bath. 

A  strong  solution  of  nitric  acid  is  used  for  etch- 
ing zinc  plates.     This  acid  is  pla(;ed  in  tray^,  which 
are  rocked  constantly,  either  by  power  or  by  hand, 
while    the    plate   is   being   etched.      The   melted 
167 


THE   BUILDING   OF  A   BOOK 

dragon's  blood  makes  a  perfect  acid  resistant  and 
the  acid,  therefore,  does  not  affect  the  print  (or 
picture  itself),  but  eats  away  the  bare  surfaces  of 
the  metal  between  the  black  lines  and  the  dots. 
When  this  etching  has  proceeded  far  enough  to 
make  a  plate  that  may  be  used  in  printing,  the 
lines  and  dots  of  the  picture  stand  up  in  bold 
relief,  while  the  metal  around  these  lines  and  dots 
has  been  eaten  away  to  a  considerable  depth. 

There  are  many  details  that  cannot  be  described 
in  a  short  article,  but  these  are  the  principal  opera- 
tions gone  through  in  etching  the  plate.  One  very 
important  detail  in  etching  is  to  prevent  ''under- 
cutting," It  is  obvious  that  if  the  acid  will  eat 
down,  it  will  also  eat  sidewise.  The  acid  resistant 
is  only  on  the  surface.  If  means  were  not  taken 
to  prevent  it,  as  soon  as  the  acid  got  below  the  sur- 
face, it  would  begin  to  eat  in  under  the  print  and 
the  lines  and  dots  of  the  picture  would  disappear; 
therefore,  as  soon  as  the  plate  has  had  its  first 
"bite,"  it  is  taken  from  the  acid,  dried,  and  drag- 
on's blood  is  brushed  against  the  sides  of  the  lines. 
This  powder  is  then  melted  and  the  plate  given 
another  etching.  While  the  plate  is  being  etched 
down,  it  is  removed  from  the  acid  several  times, 
and  the  sides  of  the  dots  and  lines  are  again  pro- 
tected. After  leaving  the  etching  room  the  plate 
goes  to  the  "router,"  an  ingenious  machine,  with 
a  cutting  tool  revolving  at  a  speed  of  fourteen  thou- 
sand revolutions  a  minute,  which  quickly  removes 
168 


HALF-TONE,  LINE,  AND  COLOR  PLATES 

the  waste  metal  in  the  large  open  places  between 
the  Mnes  and  dots.  The  zinc  plates  are  carefully 
looked  over  by  a  finisher,  defects  are  removed,  and 
the  metal  plates  are  then  nailed  on  wooden  blocks, 
so  that  they  will  be  "type-high,"  that  is,  of  ex- 
actly the  same  height  as  the  metal  type-forms  used 
in  printing.  Hand  presses  are  a  necessity  in  all 
photo-engraving  shops,  and  with  these  several 
"proofs"  of  each  plate  are  printed  in  order  that  the 
customer  may  judge  of  the  quality  of  the  plate. 

While  the  Une,  or  zinc  etching  process  is  im- 
mensely useful,  in  reproducing  pen-and-ink  draw- 
ings, maps,  wood-cut  prints,  etc.,  yet  the  half-tone 
process  is  the  one  that  practically  revolutionized  all 
known  methods  of  illustration,  after  it  had  become 
perfected.  While  zinc  etching  is  limited  in  its 
capabilities  to  the  reproduction  of  black  and  white 
subjects,  practically  everything  in  art  or  nature 
may  be  reproduced  by  the  half-tone  process.  The 
half-tone  "screen"  makes  it  possible  to  take  a 
photograph  or  wash  drawing  and  break  the  flat 
surface  of  the  picture  up  into  lines  and  dots,  with 
the  white  spaces  between  that  are  an  absolute 
essential  in  relief  plate  printing.  If  a  half-tone 
print  taken  from  any  magazine  or  periodical  is  ex- 
aminf'd  closely,  either  with  the  naked  eye  or  a 
magnifying  glass,  it  will  be  seen  that  tlur  entire 
picture  is  a  perfect  network  of  lines  and  dots,  and 
that  thero  an*  two  sets  of  liiifs  running  diagonally 
across  the  plate  at  right  angles  to  each  other.  In 
1G9 


THE  BUILDING  OF  A   BOOK 

the  darker  portions  of  the  pictui'e  it  will  be  seen 
that  the  Hnes  are  very  heavy,  with  a  small  white 
dot  in  the  centre  of  each  square,  made  by  the  inter- 
secting lines.  In  the  lighter  portions  of  the  pic- 
ture, these  hnes  will  be  found  to  be  very  fine,  while 
in  the  lightest  parts,  or  in  the  "high  lights,"  as 
they  are  called,  the  lines  disappear  and  in  their 
places  are  a  mass  of  fine  dots,  not  much  larger 
than  a  pin  point. 

To  make  a  half-tone  plate  of  a  photograph  or 
other  subject,  it  is  necessary  to  break  the  nega- 
tive up  into  Hnes  and  dots.  It  is  for  this  purpose 
that  the  half-tone  ''screen"  is  used.  The  screen 
consists  of  two  thin  pieces  of  plate-glass,  on  the 
surface  of  which  a  series  of  very  deUcate  parallel 
black  lines  have  been  ruled  running  diagonally 
across  the  glass.  When  these  pieces  of  glass  are 
placed  together,  face  to  face,  the  parallel  lines 
ruled  on  them  intersect  each  other  at  right  angles, 
giving  a  very  fine  "mosquito-netting"  effect.  The 
method  of  making  the  negative  is  very  similar 
to  that  described  in  making  line  negatives,  except- 
ing that  in  making  a  half-tone  negative  the  screen 
is  placed  in  the  plate-holder  directly  in  front  of 
the  negative.  The  subject  is  then  photographed, 
and  the  result  is  a  negative  completely  covered 
with  a  mass  of  fine  transparent  lines  and  dots. 

Copper  is  generally  used  instead  of  zinc  in  mak- 
ing half-tone  plates.  In  making  a  print  on  copper 
the  Ught  shines  through  the  transparent  Unes  and 
170 


HALF-TONE,  LINE,  AND  COLOR  PLATES 

dots  of  the  negative  and  hardens  the  sensitized 
surface  of  the  plate.  The  black  parts  of  the  nega- 
tive between  the  transparent  Unes  and  dots  pro- 
tect the  sensitized  surface.  When  the  plate,  after 
printing,  is  placed  under  a  water  tap,  the  parts  of 
the  sensitized  surface  that  have  not  been  acted 
upon  by  Ught  wash  away,  leaving  a  print  that 
becomes  acid  proof  after  being  subjected  to  an 
intense  heat. 

The  method  of  etching  a  copper  plate  is  similar 
to  that  already  described  for  etching  zinc  plates, 
excepting  that  sesquichloridc  of  iron  is  used  in- 
stead of  nitric  acid.  In  a  half-tone  the  dots  and 
lines  are  so  close  together  that  great  depth  is 
neither  desirable  nor  possible,  and  no  steps  are 
taken  to  prevent  undercutting. 

The  half-tone  plate,  after  it  has  been  carried  as 
far  as  possible  by  mechanical  processes,  is  capable 
of  great  improvement  in  the  hands  of  skilful  en- 
gravers. The  plate  as  it  comes  from  the  etching 
bath  may  be  termed  a  mechanical  product. 
Though  great  skill  is  necessary  in  making  the  nega- 
tive, the  print,  and  the  etching,  the  hand-fini.^hing 
gives  the  plate  many  of  its  artistic  qualities. 
The  unfinished  plate  is  apt  to  be  more  or  less 
"flat"  in  appearance;  the  high  lights  may  not 
be  fight  enough,  while  the  dark  portions  of  the  plate 
are  apt,  in  cases,  to  be  too  light.  The  most  com- 
mon methods  of  finishing  are  reetching  and  bur- 
nishing. The  finisher  dips  a  camel's-hair  brush 
171 


THE  BUILDING  OF  A  BOOK 

in  acid  and  applies  it  to  the  high-light  portions  of 
the  plate,  or  other  places  that  are  too  dark,  and 
allows  it  to  act  on  the  metal  until  these  parts  of 
the  plate  are  lightened  sufficiently.  The  parts  of 
the  plate  that  are  too  light  are  made  darker  by 
rubbing  down  the  surface  of  the  plate  with  a  tool 
called  the  burnisher.  The  skilful,  artistic  finisher 
has  other  methods  at  his  command  of  making  the 
plate  reproduce  as  accurately  and  as  artistically 
as  possible  the  original  drawing  or  photograph. 
High  hghts  are  sometimes  cut  out  entirely,  or  a 
fine  engraver's  tool  may  be  "run"  between  the 
lines;  while  a  "wood-engraved"  finish  is  produced 
by  cutting,  in  certain  portions  of  the  plate,  Unes 
similar  to  those  used  in  wood  engraving. 

In  the  price-cutting  that  has  been  going  on  as 
a  result  of  the  fierce  competition  that  has  existed 
among  photo-engravers  during  the  past  few  years, 
the  artistic  possibilities  of  the  half-tone  have  been 
lost  sight  of  to  a  certain  extent.  The  product  of 
the  engravers  is  sold  by  the  square  inch,  regardless 
of  the  fact  that  the  cost  of  one  plate  may  be  double 
the  cost  of  another  plate  of  the  same  size,  but  from 
a  different  subject. 

A  point  also  worth  remembering  is  that  until  the 
plate  reaches  the  finishers'  hands,  it  has  been  more 
or  less  of  a  mechanical  product;  and  that  the 
plate  is  made  an  artistic  creation  by  the  skill, 
care,  and  brains  of  an  intelligent  class  of  men 
earning  from  $25  to  $50  a  week.  Those  expecting 
172 


HALF-TONE,  LINE,  AND  COLOR  PLATES 

"the  best"  at  "the  lowest  price"  can  easily  guess 
about  how  much  of  this  high-priced  finishing  they 
will  get  when  the  price  paid  barely  covers  the  cost 
of  the  mechanical  product.  Then,  engravers 
striving  for  high  quality  in  the  product  pay  from 
tw^enty-five  to  fifty  per  cent  higher  wages,  as  a  rule, 
than  the  cheap,  commercial  shops.  But  the  idea  of 
square-inch  price  has  so  generally  permeated  the 
buying  public,  that  the  larger  and  better  shops 
have  been  compelled,  to  a  greater  or  less  extent,  to 
meet  the  prices  of  their  less  skilful  competitors. 
They  are  enabled  to  do  this  and  give  their  cus- 
tomers much  greater  value  for  their  money,  only 
through  better  business  methods,  more  modern 
facilities,  and  by  conducting  the  business  on  a 
very  large  scale. 

The  screens  used  in  making  half-tones  represent 
an  enormous  outlay  in  the  large  shops.  A  com- 
paratively small  screen  costs  in  the  neighborhood 
of  SIOO.  A  screen  18  x  20,  ruled  120  or  133  lines 
to  the  inch,  costs  about  $500.  Screens  are  made 
with  different  nuinJK'rs  of  lines  to  the  inch,  from 
65,  for  coarse,  newspaper  work,  up  to  400.  The 
screens  in  general  use  are  65,  85,  100,  110,  120,  133, 
150,  100,  175,  and  200;  but  intermediate  sizes 
are  also  used,  such  as  125  and  140.  A  screen 
containing  200  lines  to  the  inch  is  about  the  finest 
ever  used  for  ordinary  printing  purposes,  though 
a  few  screens  with  250,  300,  and  400  lines  to  the 
inch  have  been  made.  A  wcll-eciuipped  photo- 
173 


THE  BUILDING  OF  A   BOOK 

engraving  establishment  must  have  all  these 
screens,  and  all  of  them  in  many  different  sizes. 
In  the  writer's  shop  there  are  fifteen  cameras,  all 
of  them  in  constant  use  in  the  daytime  and  five 
or  six  of  them  are  always  in  use  all  night.  Some 
days  the  bulk  of  the  work  in  the  place  will  be  a 
fine  grade  of  magazine  engraving  calling  for  a  175 
screen.  In  order  to  keep  all  the  cameras  at  work 
all  the  time,  a  thing  that  is  very  important  in 
a  well-regulated  place,  it  is  necessary  to  have  a 
number  of  175  screens  almost  equal  to  the  number 
of  cameras.  The  same  is  true  of  most  of  the  other 
screens  in  general  use.  Fortunately  for  the  en- 
graver and  the  consumer  these  screens  practically 
last  forever  if  carefully  handled. 

The  greatest  developments  in  process  work 
during  the  past  few  years  have  been  in  the  making 
of  color  plates.  Beautiful  results  are  obtained  in 
two  colors  by  the  "duograph"  or  "duotone" 
processes,  the  plates  being  made  for  two  printings. 
The  three-color  process  aims  to  reproduce  all  colors 
in  three  printings,  by  using  inks  of  red,  yellow, 
and  blue.  This  process  is  very  interesting,  but 
somewhat  intricate.  Primarily,  the  results  are 
made  possible  by  color  separations.  The  aim  is 
to  take  a  colored  subject  —  an  oil  painting,  for 
instance  —  and  by  photographing  it  three  times, 
each  time  through  a  different  colored  piece  of 
glass,  to  divide  all  the  colors  into  what  are  called 
the  three  primary  colors  —  red,  yellow,  and  blue. 
174 


HALF-TONE,   LINE,  AND  COLOR  PLATES 

From  each  of  these  color  separations  a  half-tone 
plate  is  made,  and  when  these  plates  are  put  on 
the  printing-press,  and  the  impressions  are  printed 
over  each  other  in  yellow,  red,  and  blue  inks, 
respectively,  the  result  is  a  printed  picture  repro- 
ducing correctly  all  the  colors  of  the  original 
subject. 

While  many  subjects  may  be  reproduced  ac- 
curately by  this  process,  yet  the  three-color  pro- 
cess seems  inadequate  to  give  perfectly  satisfactory 
results  in  all  cases.  Ncarl}'  all  three-color  process 
houses  are  now  prepared  to  add  a  fourth,  or  key, 
plate,  to  be  printed  in  black,  in  case  the  subject 
seems  to  need  it.  The  throe-color  process  has 
enabled  many  of  the  leading  magazines  to  use 
illustrations  in  colors,  and  there  is  not  the  slight- 
est doubt  but  that  there  is  a  great  future  for  this 
class  of  work. 


175 


THE  WAX   PROCESS 
By  Robert   D.   Servoss 

Almost  all  of  the  maps  found  in  text  and  ref- 
erence books,  as  well  as  the  geometrical  diagrams 
used  in  mathematical  and  scientific  works,  are 
made  by  what  is  known  as  the  "wax  process." 

This  process  was  invented  and  patented  by  an 
Englishman  named  Palmer  about  1840,  shortly 
after  the  discovery  of  the  method  of  making  elec- 
trotype plates  for  printing  purposes.  He  announced 
that  he  would  furnish  artists  with  copper  plates 
covered  with  a  waxlike  composition  on  which 
they  could  make  their  own  drawings,  in  a  manner 
similar  to  but  much  simpler  than  the  method 
followed  by  the  etcher  on  copper.  After  receiving 
the  artist's  work,  the  plates  were  to  be  returned 
to  Palmer,  who  then  made  an  ordinary  electrotype 
of  the  engraving.  A  circular,  issued  about  1841, 
gives  the  necessary  instructions  for  engraving,  and 
the  prices  for  the  wax-coated  plates  and  the  sub- 
sequent electrotypes,  and  shows  many  beautiful 
illustrations  made  by  artists  of  that  time.  It 
was  then  called  the  " glyphographic  process." 

The  process  was  first  introduced  into  this  country 
by  a  firm  of  printers  in  Buffalo,  New  York,  and  was 
176 


THE  WAX  PROCESS 

used  by  them  for  several  years  for  illustrating  the 
United  States  patent  office  reports  until  it  was 
superseded  upon  the  introduction  of  photo-lithog- 
raphy and  the  subsequent  adoption  by  the  govern- 
ment of  a  uniform  standard  for  patent  drawings. 

This  process  may  be  described  in  a  general  way 
as  follows:  A  copper  plate  having  a  highly 
polished  surface  is  first  blackened  by  the  applica- 
tion of  a  weak  solution  of  sulphuret  of  potassium, 
or  other  chemical  which  will  oxidize  the  copper. 
Then  a  composition,  made  by  melting  together 
in  proper  proportions,  beeswax,  zinc-white,  and 
paraffin,  is  "flowed"'  over  the  blackened  surface, 
producing  an  opaque  whitish  engraving  ground. 
The  thickness  of  the  wax  is  varied  according  to  the 
subject  to  be  engraved,  but  in  general  should  not 
exceed  that  of  heavy  writing  paper.  After  it 
has  been  allowed  to  cool  with  the  plate  lying 
perfectly  horizontal,  the  wax  is  smoothed  down 
to  an  even  thickness  by  a  steel  scrapei-,  and  the 
plate  is  then  ready  to  receive  the  engraving. 

Taking  for  an  example  the  engraving  of  a  map, 
the  original  copy  is  cither  j)hotogruphod  on  the 
wax  surface,  or  is  transferred  to  it  by  covering  the 
back  of  the  copy  with  red  chalk  and  tracing  over 
every  lino  with  a  stool  point.  The  photograph,  or 
the  tracing,  on  the  wax  must  not  be  a  reversed  one, 
as  might  be  supposed,  but  should  "read  right." 
The  outlines  of  the  map  are  then  gone  over,  willi 
an  engraving  tool  which  cuts  out  a  small  channel 
177 


THE  BUILDING  OF  A   BOOK 

in  the  wax,  down  to,  but  not  into,  the  surface  of 
the  copper  plate.  The  bottoms  of  these  channels 
will  eventually  form  the  surface  of  the  relief 
hnes  in  the  resultant  electrotype  plate,  but  now 
appear  as  dark  lines  against  the  whitish  ground- 
work of  the  wax. 

The  engraving  tools  are  made  in  different  sizes, 
and  therefore  channels  of  varying  widths  at  the 
bottoms  may  be  cut  in  order  to  produce  lines  of 
different  sizes.  In  cutting  lines  to  indicate  rivers, 
—  which  must  be  thin  at  the  source  and  increase 
in  thickness  as  they  approach  the  mouth,  —  tools 
are  used  in  graduated  sizes.  The  first  one  cuts 
its  own  line  of  equal  width  for  a  very  short  dis- 
tance, then  another  and  slightly  wider  tool  is  used, 
the  next  still  wider,  and  so  on  until  the  river  line 
is  completed.  In  reality  a  series  of  steps,  the  work 
is  so  done  that  the  line  appears  to  the  eye  to  in- 
crease in  width  evenly  and  gradually  from  a  very 
fine  beginning  to  a  heavy  ending.  Tlie  wavy 
lines  indicating  hills  and  mountains  are  made  in 
substantially  the  same  way.  Special  steel  punches 
are  pressed  through  the  wax  to  the  copper  to  show 
town  and  capital  marks,  and  after  all  the  lines  and 
marks  are  completed,  the  plate  is  ready  to  receive 
the  lettering.  The  name  of  each  individual  town, 
city,  state,  or  river  is  set  up  in  printer's  type  and 
stamped  one  name  at  a  time  into  the  wax.  The 
type  is  placed  in  a  small  tool  resembhng  a  vise, 
which  holds  it  in  perfect  alignment  and  on  a  perfect 
178 


THE  WAX   PROCESS 

level.  Tools  of  various  shapes  are  used  for  stamp- 
ing the  names  in  straight  and  curved  lines.  It  is 
necessary  to  wet  the  type  to  prevent  its  adhering 
to  the  wax. 

The  plate  is  then  carefully  compared  with  the 
original  copy  and  after  any  necessary  corrections 
have  been  made  it  is  gone  over  by  an  expert  oper- 
ator, who  cuts  out  any  of  the  channels  which  may 
have  been  obliterated  by  the  burr  of  the  wax, 
resulting  from  pressing  in  the  names. 

We  now  have  a  plate  in  which  the  lines  have  been 
cut  in  small  channels  and  the  names  stamped  with 
type.  This  is  a  matrix,  or  mould,  from  which  an 
electrotype  of  the  lines  now  sunken  in  the  wax 
may  be  made  in  high  rehef  for  printing,  but  the 
blank  portions  of  the  wax  are  so  thin  that  it  is 
first  necessary  to  fill  in  all  these  places  on  the 
plates  with  wax  in  order  to  produce  a  sufficiently 
deep  electrotype  plate.  This  is  done  by  "building 
up"  the  plate.  A  small  hook-.shapcd  tool,  heated 
over  a  gas  jet,  is  used  to  melt  small  pieces  of  wax 
which  are  run  carefully  around  all  the  names  and 
in  the  spaces  between  hnes,  thus  filling  up  all  these 
spaces  with  a  round,  smooth  body  of  wax.  From 
this  moulrl  an  ordinary  electrotype  is  made  by 
the  method  described  elsewhere  in  this  book. 

All    these    operations    require    much    skill    and 

patience  at  every  step,  but  the  plates  produced  by 

the   wax   process   are   always   much    deeper   and 

stronger  than  those  made  by  any  other  process. 

179 


MAKING   INTAGLIO    PLATES 

By  Elmer  Latham 

The  method  by  which  a  photogravure  plate  is 
produced,  is  probably  the  least  understood  of  all 
of  the  many  photo-processes  of  reproduction.  This 
is  chiefly  on  account  of  the  difficulty  of  the  pro- 
cess, which  is  not  an  easy  matter  to  explain  in 
detail,  and  also  on  account  of  the  secrecy  with 
which  all  plate  makers  guard  their  processes. 

The  reproduction  of  a  mezzotint  or  line-engraved 
print,  when  made  by  a  good  photogravure  process, 
produces  in  most  cases  a  print  which  cannot  be 
detected  from  the  original.  The  originator  of 
the  process  was  probably  Fox  Talbot,  an  EngUsh- 
man.  The  writer  has  seen  one  of  his  prints,  made 
between  1855  and  1860,  which  was  a  very  credit- 
able piece  of  work.  Dujardin  of  Paris  took  up 
Talbot's  process,  and  after  much  modification, 
succeeded  in  developing  a  successful  process  which 
he  is  working  to-day.  All  photogravure  plate 
makers  of  the  present  time  have  more  or  less 
copied  the  process  of  Fox  Talbot. 

There  are  three  difTerent  methods  of  making  these 
plates  known  to  the  writer.  The  reader  probably 
knows  that  a  photogravure  plate  is  not  a  relief 
180 


MAKING  INTAGLIO   PLATES 

plate,  but  an  intaglio,  and  is  printed  on  an 
etching-press  in  the  same  manner  as  an  etching 
and  requires  special  skill  in  printing  on  the  part 
of  the  printer  to  produce  the  best  results.  I  will 
give  a  brief  explanation  of  the  three  different 
processes. 

The  first  is  known  as  the  transfer  process.  In 
this  process  a  reversed  photographic  negative  is 
made  from  the  copy,  from  which  a  positive  or 
"  transparency  "  is  made,  either  by  contact  or  in 
the  camera.  A  piece  of  carbon  paper  is  then 
coated  lightly  with  gelatine,  sensitized  with  bichro- 
mate of  potassium  and  allowed  to  dry.  The  paper 
is  then  placed  in  contact  with  the  positive  and 
printed  in  daylight  until  the  image  is  imprinted  on 
the  gelatine  coating  of  the  paper,  such  portions  of 
which  as  have  received  the  most  exposure  from 
the  action  of  light  becoming  quite  insoluble.  A 
copper  plate,  cleaned  so  that  it  is  free  from  grease, 
is  introduced  into  a  large  box  into  which  has  been 
blown  a  very  finely  powtlered  resin,  which  is 
allowed  to  settle  somewhat  before  putting  in  the 
plate.  Tlie  plate  is  allowed  to  remain  in  the  box 
until  a  fine  deposit  of  resin  has  settled  all  over  it. 
It  is  then  carefully  removeil  and  heated  over  a 
gas  burner  until  the  resin  adheres  firmly  to  the 
I)late.  The  resin  is  melted  only  to  such  a  point 
that  it  forms  a  fine  grain  all  over  the  plate,  leav- 
ing interstices  of  bare  copper  between.  The 
paper,  on  (he  gelafine  surface  of  whicli  the  picture 
181 


THE  BUILDING  OF  A  BOOK 

is  printed,  is  now  placed  in  a  tray  of  warm  water, 
and  the  parts  of  the  image  which  have  had  the 
least  exposure  are  thereby  dissolved  and  washed 
away,  the  image  being  thus  fully  developed  on  the 
paper.  This  is  placed  in  contact  with  the  grained 
plate,  which  has  been  placed  in  the  tray  of  water, 
and  firmly  squeezed  in  contact  with  the  plate. 
The  paper  is  stripped  off,  leaving  the  gelatine  film 
on  the  copper.  The  plate  is  now  removed  from 
the  tray  and  dried,  and  is  then  ready  for  etching, 
which  is  accomplished  by  placing  the  plate  suc- 
cessively in  several  baths  of  acid  of  different 
strengths  until  the  desired  results  are  obtained. 
This  process  gives  a  shallow  plate,  of  not  great 
wearing  quahty,  and,  as  a  rule,  requires  a  great 
deal  of  work  by  the  engraver  to  bring  the  plate 
up  to  anything  hke  the  copy.  The  hght  tints 
come  out  very  soft  and  smooth,  but  the  black 
tones  etch  "  flat "  and  lose  all  detail.  These 
blacks  must  be  put  in  by  hand.  The  poor  wear- 
ing quahties  of  these  plates  make  them  undesirable 
in  cases  where  a  large  edition  has  to  be  printed. 

The  next  process  is  the  "  deposited  "  plate  used 
by  "Goupil  "  of  Paris,  in  which  copper  is  deposited 
by  electricity  upon  a  swelled  gelatine  film  which 
has  had  a  grain  formed  upon  its  surface  chemically 
or  otherwise.  The  deposition  has  to  be  continued 
until  the  plate  has  acquired  the  necessary  thick- 
ness, which  takes  about  three  weeks ;  and  this  is  a 
long  time  to  wait  in  these  days,  when  a  publisher 
182 


MAKING  INTAGLIO  PLATES 

usually  expects  his  order  executed  in  ten  days. 
These  plates  are  practically  hand  made.  The 
process  gives  a  plate  that  could  not  possibly  be 
used  without  a  great  deal  of  retouching  by  an 
expert  engraver.  Goupil  turns  out  a  beautiful 
plate,  due  principally  to  his  large  force  of  engrav- 
ers, one  man  working  on  a  particular  part  of  the 
plate,  then  passing  it  on  to  another  who  does 
some  other  portion,  and  so  on,  until  the  plate  is 
finished.  In  this  way  each  engraver  becomes  ex- 
ceedingly skilful  in  one  thing.  Line  engraving  is 
reproduced  by  this  process  exceedingly  well,  but 
such  plates,  like  the  transfer  process,  are  shallow 
and  give  out  soon  in  the  printing. 

The  last  process  that  I  have  to  deal  with  is  the 
one  I  am  working  myself.  In  this  process  the 
plates  are  made  in  two  or  more  etchings,  according 
to  the  requirements  of  the  subject  which  is  to  be 
reproduced.  Tliis  method  produces  a  plate  of 
great  depth  both  in  the  light  and  black  tints,  and 
on  account  of  the  small  amount  of  hand-work  re- 
quired after  the  plate  is  etched,  the  copy  is  followed 
very  closely.  With  a  good  positive  and  favorable 
conditions,  quite  frequently  a  plate  is  made  ujion 
which  the  retoucher  needs  to  do  no  work  at  all, 
and  a  more  faithful  reproduction  is  made  than  by 
any  of  the  other  methods  that  I  have  mentioned. 
After  a  good  positive  is  procured,  the  copper  plate 
is  cleaned,  and  a  sensitized  sohition  of  gelatine  is 
flowed  over  the  plate,  dried  down,  and  then  printed 
183 


THE  BUILDING  OF  A  BOOK 

under  the  positive,  with  a  short  exposure.  The 
plate  is  grained  as  in  the  transfer  process,  and  is 
then  etched. 

This  first  etching,  on  account  of  the  short  ex- 
posure, goes  over  the  plate  in  about  three  minutes, 
and  is  simply  intended  to  get  the  hght  tints. 
The  plate  is  again  cleaned  off  and  coated,  this 
time  in  a  different  manner,  and  given  a  much 
longer  exposure  under  the  positive.  The  next 
etching  takes  about  three  hours,  which  gives  the 
blacks  great  depth.  Comparing  this  with  the 
transfer  plate  which  has  an  etching  of  from  fifteen 
to  twenty  minutes,  the  reason  for  the  difference 
in  the  wearing  quahties  of  the  plate  is  quite  evi- 
dent. This  process,  whether  used  by  myself  or 
others,  I  feel  free  to  say  is  the  best  one  that  has 
ever  been  worked,  inasmuch  as  it  gives  a  far  more 
faithful  reproduction  than  any  of  the  others  with 
a  minimum  of  work  by  the  retoucher. 

Some  plate  makers  claim  to  make  all  their  plates 
without  any  retouching,  which  cannot  be  done. 
As  I  have  mentioned  before,  occasionally  a  plate 
can  be  made  as  good  as  the  copy  without  hand- 
work. But  to  say  that  any  chemical  process  gives 
such  results  continually,  or  that  a  plate  cannot 
be  improved  by  a  skilful  retoucher  is,  to  say  the 
least,  misleading.  All  of  the  different  processes  are 
very  sensitive  to  atmospheric  influences,  and  no 
small  amount  of  chemical  as  well  as  mechanical 
skill  is  required  to  keep  things  running  smoothly; 
184 


MAILING  INTAGLIO  PLATES 

and  at  certain  times  the  best  of  operators  are  at 
a  loss  to  remedy  some  slight  fault  that  may  upset 
things  temporarily.  Photogravure  making  is  based 
upon  a  foundation  of  small  details,  that  must  be 
looked  after  with  the  utmost  care,  and  the  neglect 
of  any  one  of  which  means  failure  at  the  end.  So 
it  may  be  surmised  that  at  times  the  operator  has 
trouble  of  his  own. 

Every  maker  of  plates,  no  matter  which  process 
he  uses,  has  his  individual  ways  of  doing  things,  so 
that  except  in  a  general  way  no  two  processes  are 
operated  alike.  This  gives  an  individuality  to 
each  man's  work,  and  an  expert  can  easily  tell 
one  from  another.  For  high-class  illustrations,  no 
other  photographic  process  can  compare  with 
photogi'avure,  and  no  doubt  it  will  be  many  years 
before  anything  will  be  found  to  excel  or  even  equal 
it.  Much  experimenting  has  been  done  with  other 
methods,  but  the  results  have  always  been  inferior, 
and  I  think  it  is  safe  to  predict  that  the  photo- 
gravure will  always  be  popular. 

Etchings,  mezzotints,  antl  steel  engravings  are 
still  occasionally  used  in  the  illustration  of  fine 
books,  and  brief  descriptions  of  how  they  are 
made  will  be  of  interest. 

An  etching  is  usually  mad*'  on  a  c()])[)er  plate, 
nie  plate  being  covered  with  a  thin  coating  of 
wax,  the  artist  works  on  it  with  an  etching  point, 
sketching  his  subject  on  the  plate  in  fine  lines 
as  he  would  in  making  a  jx-n-and-ink  drawing,  but 
18.5 


THE  BUILDING  OF  A  BOOK 

cutting  his  lines  through  to  the  copper.  The 
plate  is  then  "walled  in"  with  a  high  rim  of  wax, 
forming  a  sort  of  tray  of  the  plate.  Into  this  tray 
is  poured  a  diluted  solution  of  nitric  acid,  which 
etches,  or  "bites,"  into  the  uncovered  lines  on  the 
plate.  Some  artists  give  a  plate  a  short  "bite," 
as  the  etching  is  called,  for  the  light  lines,  then 
cover  these  portions  of  the  plate  with  wax  and 
give  the  plate  successive  "bites,"  stopping  out 
each  part  as  it  gains  its  required  depth.  Others 
remove  the  coating  and  "prove"  the  plate  by  tak- 
ing a  print  from  it  after  each  "bite,"  —  each  of 
these  prints  being  known  as  a  "state  of  the  plate" 
and  showing  what  is  still  required  to  be  done. 
In  the  work  of  an  etcher  like  Wliistler  the  impres- 
sions of  the  "first  state,"  "second  state,"  etc., 
are  of  considerable  interest,  as  they  show  the  prog- 
ress of  the  man's  work,  but,  except  as  an  object 
of  interest  or  as  a  curiosity,  these  prints  can  have 
no  real  value  as  they  are  unfinished  work,  simply 
showing  the  various  stages  in  the  making  of  a 
work  of  art. 

A  mezzotint  is  also  usually  made  on  a  copper 
plate.  A  texture,  or  groundwork,  is  worked  on 
the  copper  plate  with  a  tool  resembling  a  cabinet 
maker's  toothed  plane  iron,  except  it  is  rounded  at 
the  end.  Tlie  teeth  are  very  fine,  ranging  from 
forty  to  one  hundred  and  twenty  to  the  inch  in 
different  tools.  This  tool  is  called  a  "Bercier," 
or  "rocker."  The  rounded  edge  allows  the  tool 
186 


MAKING  INTAGLIO  PLATES 

to  be  rocked  across  the  plate,  the  rocking  motion 
causing  the  teeth  to  form  indentations  in  the 
copper.  The  rocking  has  to  be  continued  until 
the  surface  of  the  plate  is  completely  covered,  and 
it  then  presents  an  appearance  like  velvet.  Rock- 
ing in  from  forty  to  sixty  directions  is  necessary 
to  cover  the  plate  properly.  The  durability  of  a 
mezzotint  plate  depends  entirely  upon  the  pres- 
sure put  upon  the  rocker,  and  the  depth  to  which 
it  penetrates  the  copper.  After  the  ground  is 
thus  laid,  the  outUne  is  sketched  in  on  the  rocked 
surface,  which  takes  the  pencil  easily,  and  then 
with  steel  scrapers  and  burnishers  the  light  and 
middle  tints  are  worked  down,  leaving  undisturbed 
the  portions  of  the  surface  where  the  strongest 
blacks  arc  to  be.  From  time  to  time,  a  print  is 
taken  from  the  plate,  to  note  the  progress  of  the 
work,  which  advances  slowly  to  the  finish.  On 
account  of  the  length  of  time  necessary  for  the 
laying  of  the  ground  and  the  scraping  of  the  plate, 
many  artists  hesitate  to  attempt  mezzotint  plates. 
There  arc  very  few  men  in  this  country  to-day 
who  do  mezzotint  engraving,  which,  considering 
the  results  to  be  obtained,  seems  somewhat  sur- 
prising. 

For  flesh  tones,  drapery,  and  ]an(lscai)cs  it  has 
no  efjual.  The  velvety  richness  of  the  blacks, 
the  beautiful  gradations  of  the  middle  tones,  and 
the  extreme  rjelicacy  of  the  light  tints  give  the  artist 
a  power  of  expression  not  obtainable  by  any  other 
1S7 


THE  BUILDING  OF  A  BOOK 

method  of  engraving.  Besides  this,  as  the  engrav- 
ing is  done  on  the  bare  copper,  the  artist  can  see 
at  all  times  the  progress  of  his  work  without  having 
to  take  off  the  wax  ground  as  he  must  in  making 
an  etching.  This  is  a  great  advantage,  for  as  the 
effect  of  each  stroke  can  be  plainly  seen  on  the  plate, 
the  element  of  uncertainty  which  always  attends 
the  production  of  an  etching  is  entirely  eliminated, 
and  it  is  then  simply  a  question  of  skill  with  the 
scraper.  The  difficulty  of  obtaining  rockers  is  one 
great  drawback.  I  doubt  if  one  could  be  obtained 
in  New  York  to-day.  The  teeth  have  to  be  very 
accurately  cut,  and  a  perfect  tool  has  a  value  to 
an  engraver  that  cannot  well  be  estimated.  The 
lack  of  demand  has  prevented  their  manufacture 
in  this  country,  but  they  could  be  made  here  by 
any  fine  tool  maker. 

Steel  engravings  are  still  used  to  some  extent 
in  this  country,  although  only  in  portrait  work. 
A  wax  ground  is  laid  on  the  plate  as  in  etching. 
A  tracing  is  made  from  the  photograph,  from 
which  the  picture  is  to  be  made,  and  is  then  trans- 
ferred to  the  wax  ground.  The  engraver  then 
follows  the  lines  of  the  tracing  with  an  etching 
point,  the  hair,  head,  and  outline  of  the  features 
being  gone  over  carefully.  Tlien  the  plate  is 
etched  with  weak  nitric  acid.  If  the  face  is  to 
be  "stippled,"  it  is  covered  with  fine  dots  made 
by  a  graver  directly  on  the  surface  of  the  metal 
after  the  plate  has  been  etched  and  the  wax 
188 


MAiaNG  INTAGLIO  PLATES 

cleaned  off.  If  the  face  is  to  be  a  mezzotint,  that 
part  of  the  work  is  all  rocked  over,  and  then 
scraped  down  within  the  etched  outline,  when  the 
flesh  is  modelled  as  in  a  regular  mezzotint.  The 
drapery,  background,  etc.,  is  usuallj'  done  by  a 
ruling  machine  with  fine  or  coarse,  waved  or 
straight  lines,  as  the  texture  may  require.  These 
lines  are  ruled  through  a  coating  of  wax,  and  then, 
by  etching  and  stopping  out,  the  required  results 
are  obtained. 

This  method  of  engraving  is  also  giving  place 
to  process  work,  and  in  a  few  years  more  the  steel 
engraved  portrait  will  probably  be  a  thing  of  the 
past. 


189 


PRINTING   INTAGLIO  PLATES 
By  George  W.  H.  Ritchie 

The  method  of  printing  etchings,  mezzotint,  and 
other  intagUo  plates  is  the  same  to-day  as  it  was 
in  the  time  of  Rembrandt  and  Durer.  The  modern 
inventor  has  found  no  way  to  economize  time, 
labor,  or  expense  in  the  work  —  excepting  that  in 
the  case  of  postage  stamps,  bond  certificates,  and 
similar  plates,  which  are  printed  in  vast  quantities, 
the  work  has  been  adapted  to  the  steam  press. 

In  the  olden  time  the  engraver,  or  etcher,  him- 
self was  to  a  considerable  extent  his  own  printer. 
He  worked  at  engraving  his  plate  until  he  needed 
a  proof  to  show  him  how  the  work  was  progressing. 
Then  he  printed,  or  "pulled,"  a  proof  and  resumed 
his  work,  taking  proofs  from  time  to  time  until 
he  had  completed  the  plate  to  his  satisfaction. 
Then,  if  only  a  small  edition  was  required,  he 
printed  it.  Proofs  taken  during  the  making  of  a 
plate  are  known  by  plate  engravers  and  printers 
as  the  "states"  of  a  plate,  and  it  is  due  to  the  whim 
of  the  etcher,  the  softness  of  the  copper,  and  the 
wearing  of  the  plate  in  printing  that  we  have 
prints  representing  many  "states"  of  a  single  plate 
190 


PRINTING  INTAGLIO  PLATES 

which  might  otherwise  have  had  but  one  state, 
thus  depriving  one  modern  print  collector  of  the 
privilege  of  discovering  in  his  proof  three  hairs 
more  or  less  in  a  donkey's  tail  than  his  rival  finds 
in  another  proof,  which  makes  the  former's  more 
valuable  by  several  hundred  pounds. 

One  form  of  press  is  used  for  all  manner  of 
intaglio  plate  printing.  It  consists  of  a  frame- 
work supporting  two  heavy  iron  rollers,  between 
which  moves  a  flat  iron  travelling  plank,  or  bed, 
and  on  this  bed  the  plate  to  be  printed  is  laid. 
The  pressure  of  the  rollers  is  regulated  by  screws  at 
each  end  of  the  top  roller,  which  is  covered  with 
two  or  three  pieces  of  thick  felt.  This  top  roller 
is  revolved  by  handles  and  the  bed  moves  along  with 
it  under  the  pressure  of  the  roller.  At  one  side 
of  the  press  stands  a  rectangular  box,  or  "stove," 
made  of  iron,  or  having  an  iron  top.  The  top  is 
heated  by  gas  and  on  it  the  printer  puts  his  plate 
while  inking  and  wiping  it.  The  heat  thins  the 
ink  as  it  is  applied,  allowing  it  to  be  worked  freely 
and  to  be  "lifted"  easily  by  the  paper. 

The  ink  is  made  of  fine  bone  dust,  vegetable  or 
other  form  of  carbon,  which  has  been  carefully 
cleansed  from  foreign  matter  and  ground  to  the 
necessary  fineness  in  combination  with  burned 
linseed  oil.  Its  strength  and  consistency  should 
be  varied  according  to  tlie  plate  which  is  in  hand, 
aufl  the  rolor  also  may  i)o  varied  to  suit  the  character 
of  the  plate  by  the  addition  of  pigments. 
191 


THE  BUILDING  OF  A  BOOK 

The  paper  used  in  plate  printing  may  be  one  of 
several  kinds,  but  the  usual  variety  is  a  fine  white 
paper  free  from  spots  and  imperfections  which 
might  mar  the  appearance  of  the  finished  print. 
This  paper  is  made  either  by  hand  or  machinery 
of  selected  bleached  cotton  rags,  and  has  a  soft, 
spongy  surface  which  yields  readily  under  the 
pressure  of  the  plate.  Before  it  can  be  used  the 
paper  is  moistened  and  allowed  to  stand  for  from 
one  to  twelve  hours,  or  even  longer,  until  it  be- 
comes evenly  and  thoroughly  dampened,  —  but 
not  wet,  —  so  that  it  will  more  readily  force  itself 
into  the  lines  of  the  plate  and  take  therefrom  and 
hold  the  ink. 

Before  printing  a  photogravure,  mezzotint,  or 
other  engraved  plate  the  printer  must  first  carefully 
examine  it  to  see  that  it  has  no  scratches,  and  that 
no  dried  ink  remains  in  the  lines  from  the  last 
printing,  and,  in  fact,  that  there  are  none  of  the 
many  possible  impedimenta  which  might  prevent 
the  production  of  a  perfect  print.  The  plate 
being  in  proper  condition,  it  is  then  thoroughly 
cleansed  with  turpentine  or  benzine,  all  traces  of 
which  must  be  carefully  wiped  from  the  surface 
before  the  ink  is  applied.  The  plate  is  then  laid 
on  the  heated  iron  box  or  "stove"  until  it  has 
become  thoroughly  warmed.  The  surface  of  the 
plate  is  covered  with  ink,  put  on  by  means  of  an 
ink-roller,  or  perhaps  the  old-fashioned  dauber, 
and  the  ink  is  thoroughly  worked  into  the  lines  or 
192 


PRINTING  INTAGLIO  PLATES 

depressions  in  the  plate.  After  this  the  ink  on  the 
flat  surface  of  the  plate  is  entirely  removed  by 
wiping  with  rags.  The  printer's  hand,  which  has 
become  more  or  less  covered  with  ink  from  the 
rags,  is  then  passed  over  a  piece  of  chalk,  or  gilder's 
white,  and  lightly  rubbed  over  the  surface  of  the 
plate,  to  remove  the  last  vestige  of  the  ink,  leaving 
a  highly  polished  flat  surface  with  the  incised 
lines  or  depressions  filled  with  ink  to  the  level  of 
the  surface. 

The  plate  is  then  ready  for  printing  and  is  placed 
on  the  bed  of  the  press,  a  sheet  of  dampened  paper 
laid  upon  it,  and  both  are  then  run  between  the 
rollers  of  the  press.  As  the  top  roller  is  encased 
in  soft  blankets,  the  soft,  dampened  paper  is  forced 
into  the  ink-filled  lines  of  the  plate,  and  when  the 
paper  is  removed  the  ink  clings  to  it  and  shows 
an  exact  impression  of  the  engraving.  This  entire 
process  nmst  be  repeated  for  each  print  made  from 
an  intaglio  plate. 

While  the  printing  of  a  steel  engraving  or  photo- 
gravure is  a  more  or  less  mechanical  operation,  the 
printing  of  an  etching  —  and  "dry  points" 
may  be  included  —  is  oftentimes  as  much  of  an 
art  as  the  actual  etching  of  the  |)late.  Tiie  two 
styles  of  printing  may  be  compared  to  (wo  kinds  of 
fishing,  —  that  of  fishing  for  flounders  with  a  drop 
line,  from  a  flat-bottomed  boat  at  low  tide  when 
one  must  just  sit  tight  until  one  has  a  bite,  and  thou 
liaul  in  the  fish,  bait  up,  drop  the  line  and  wait 

lo:; 


THE  BUILDING  OF  A   BOOK 

again,  as  against  that  of  angling  for  trout  on 
an  early  spring  day,  dropping  the  fly  in  a  likely 
spot  without  success  at  the  first  cast,  persevering 
until  rewarded  by  a  rise  and  then  by  the  sport  of 
playing  the  fish,  giving  him  line  and  reeling  him 
in  as  about  he  circles  and  finally  is  landed.  A 
good  one,  perchance,  but  the  sport  was  in  landing 
him.  So  it  is  with  printing  an  etching.  There  is 
the  opportunity  to  play  with,  and  work  hard 
over,  a  plate.  Perhaps  the  etcher  has  not,  for 
reasons  only  known  to  himself,  put  in  the  plate 
all  that  can  be  shown  in  the  print  by  ordinary 
printing.  The  printer  actually  has  to  interpret 
in  his  printing  the  etcher's  meaning,  for  the  which, 
as  a  rule,  he  gets  "more  kicks  than  ha'pence," 
and  in  the  end  wishes  he  had  stuck  to  plain  plate 
printing  as  far  as  the  profit  is  concerned. 

In  the  process  of  printing  an  etching,  the  printer 
first  covers  the  plate  with  ink  and  then  wipes  it 
with  the  rags,  and,  if  necessary,  with  the  hand. 
It  depends  entirely  upon  the  etched  work  of  the 
plate  as  to  how  it  must  be  wiped,  and  it  rests  with 
the  printer  to  prepare  a  proof  which  is  satisfactory 
to  the  etcher.  The  plate  is  wiped  "  closely  "  where 
the  high  lights  are  required  or  a  tint  (a  thin  coating 
of  ink)  left  over  certain  portions  where  it  needs  to 
be  darker.  After  this  the  plate  is  "  retroussed," 
which  is  accompHshed  by  passing  a  very  soft 
piece  of  fine  muslin,  or  a  "badger  blender,"  — 
a  soft  brush  used  by  artists,  —  delicately  over  the 
194 


PRINTING  INTAGLIO  PLATES 

work  in  the  plate  and  drawing  the  ink  up  and  over 
the  edges  of  the  Unes.  This  softens  and  broadens 
the  hnes  and  gives  a  very  rich  effect,  and,  if  con- 
tinued sufficiently,  fills  the  spaces  between  the 
lines  and  produces  an  almost  black  effect.  All 
this  work  is  varied  according  to  the  wishes  of  the 
etcher.  A  plate  that  left  the  etcher's  hand  a  mere 
skeleton  may  be  made  to  produce  a  print  which 
is  a  thing  of  fife.  The  possibihties  of  an  etching 
in  the  hands  of  a  skilful  printer  are  almost  hniit- 
less;  the  effects  can  vary  with  every  impression, 
each  showing  a  new  picture.  His  processes  are  as 
interesting  as  those  of  the  etcher  himself,  and  it 
is  within  his  capabihties  to  transform  an  etch- 
ing from  a  broad  daylight  effect  into  a  moonlight 
scene,  including  the  moon,  by  judiciously,  or 
injudiciously,  inking  and  wiping   the  plate. 

A  "dry  point"  plate  is  produced  by  drawing  on 
a  copper  plate  with  a  steel  or  diamond  point, 
and  without  biting  by  acid.  The  hncs  are  cut 
into  the  copper  and  a  burr  thrown  up  which  holds 
the  ink  in  printing,  and  j)r()(hK'(>s  a  soft,  velvety 
line.  The  method  of  printing  siu-li  a  |)late  is 
similar  to  tliat  of  an  clcliing,  but  the  po.ssibilitios 
are  not  as  great  in  the  printing,  as  they  rest  to  a 
greater  extent  upon  tlic  woik  of  the  .'utisf.  A 
great  depth  of  color,  producing  wonderfully  rich 
effects,  can  be  obtained  and  the  finer  lin(>s  can  be 
made  much  more  delicate  than  by  any  other 
method. 


THE  BUILDING  OF  A  BOOK 

The  printing  of  intaglio  plates  in  color  flourished 
for  a  short  period  in  the  latter  portion  of  the  eigh- 
teenth century,  and  the  best  prints  of  that  time 
now  in  existence  are  of  rare  beauty  and  bring 
enormous  prices.  The  process,  now  almost  a 
memory,  is  a  costly  one,  and  this  prevents  its 
use  in  book  illustration  excepting  for  volumes 
which  command  a  very  high  price.  This  kind  of 
printing  requires  the  plate  to  be  actually  painted  by 
hand  with  inks  of  such  colors  as  the  picture  may 
require,  and  the  painting  has  to  be  repeated  for 
every  impression  that  is  taken.  The  colors  are 
put  on  with  a  ''dole,"  — a  small  piece  of  muslin 
turned  to  a  point,  —  and  great  care  must  be  taken 
that  they  do  not  overlap,  or  run  into,  each  other. 
As  each  color  is  placed,  the  plate  is  wiped  clean 
with  rags  as  already  described,  and  when  all  the 
colors  have  been  properly  placed,  the  plate  is 
pulled  through  the  press  in  the  same  manner 
as  in  ordinary  printing. 

The  successful  printer  of  color  plates  must  be  a 
rare  artist  or  else  work  under  the  direction  of  an 
artist.  Little  of  this  work  is  now  done  except  in 
Paris  and  Vienna,  and  the  limited  number  of  color 
plates  of  this  kind  used  for  book  illustration  in 
this  country  does  not  warrant  the  time  and  expense 
necessary  to  train  printers  capable  of  doing  the 
work.  Even  English  plates  are  usually  sent  to 
Paris  to  be  printed. 

It  is  difficult  to  describe  the  work  of  what  is 
196 


PRINTING  INTAGLO  PLATES 

termed  artistic  printing.  Every  plate  is  a  subject 
to  be  treated  by  itself,  and  no  hard  and  fast  rule 
can  be  applied.  It  is  really  a  matter  of  artistic 
feeling,  and  to  revert  to  the  simile  of  the  angler, 
one  cannot  explain  how  a  trout  should  be  played, 
but  can  only  say  that  it  depends  on  the  fish,  the 
water,  and  the  circumstances.  A  fisherman  can 
show  you,  if  you  are  on  the  spot,  and  so  can  the 
printer. 


197 


THE   GELATINE   PROCESS 

By  Emil  Jacobi 

Of  the  many  photo-mechanical  processes  which 
have  come  into  existence  in  recent  years,  the  photo- 
gelatine,  next  to  the  half-tone  process,  has  shown 
the  greatest  adaptability  for  practical  use  in  art 
and  commerce. 

Whatever  the  name  may  be,  —  Collotype,  Arto- 
type,  Albertype,  Phototype,  or  Carbon-gravure,  — 
the  principle  is  the  same ;  an  impression  is  made  in 
printer's  ink  from  a  photo-chemically  produced 
design  on  a  gelatine  surface,  either  on  the  hand 
press  or  on  a  power  cylinder  press  similar  to  that 
used  in  Uthographic  printing. 

There  is  hardly  any  process  which  is  more  capa- 
ble of  producing  fine  works  of  art.  It  is  the  only 
true  method  for  reproducing,  in  the  full  sense  of 
the  word,  an  etching,  engraving,  a  drawing  in  pen 
and  ink,  an  aquarelle,  a  painting,  or  objects  from 
nature.  The  depth  and  richness  of  tone  of  an  en- 
graving, the  deUcate  tints  of  an  aquarelle  or  india- 
ink  sketch,  and  the  sharpness  of  the  lines  of  an 
etching  or  pen  sketch  can  be  reproduced  with  such 
fidelity  that  it  is  often  impossible  to  distinguish 
198 


THE  GELATINE  PROCESS 

the  copy  from  the  original,  and  this  is  achieved  the 
more  easily  as  the  printing  can  be  done  in  any  color 
and  on  any  material,  be  it  paper,  parchment, 
leather,  or  textile  goods. 

Another  great  advantage  of  a  gelatine  print  is 
its  inalterabiUty  and  durabihty,  no  chemicals  be- 
ing employed  in  transferring  the  pictui'e  to  the 
paper.  The  picture  itself  being  formed  by  solid 
pigments,  such  as  are  used  in  printer's  ink  or 
painter's  colors,  there  is  no  possibiUty  of  its  fading 
or  changing  color,  which  cannot  be  said  even  of 
platino  prints,  at  present  considered  the  most  last- 
ing of  all  photo-chemical  processes. 

Like  all  new  inventions,  the  photo-gelatine  pro- 
cess, in  its  early  stages,  had  to  undergo  severe  trials, 
and  for  some  years  almost  disappeared  from  public 
view,  after  many  failures  precipitated  through  un- 
scrupulous promoters  and  inefficient  persons  who 
claimed  impossibilities  for  the  new  process.  It 
took  years  of  patience  and  perseverance  to  regain 
the  lost  ground  and  overcome  the  opposition  of 
those  who  had  suffered  l)y  the  faihiro  of  this  ijro- 
cess  to  produce  the  promised  results;  but  at  pres- 
ent it  is,  in  Europe,  one  of  the  methods  in  most 
general  use  for  illustrating,  and  in  this  country  it  is 
making  steady  progress  and  rapidly  finding  favor. 

The  process,  simple  as  it  may  seem  to  the  casual 
observer,  requires,  more  than  any  other  photo- 
mechanical process,  skilled  hands  in  its  different 
manipulations  to  keep  it  up  to  tiie  standard  of 
199 


THE  BUILDING  OF  A  BOOK 

perfection.  The  following  short  description  will 
give  the  uninitiated  sufficient  enlightenment  to 
think  and  speak  inteUigently  about  it. 

The  foundation  or  starting  point,  as  of  all  the 
other  photo-mechanical  processes,  is  a  photographic 
negative ;  that  is,  a  picture  on  glass  or  some  other 
transparent  substance,  in  which  the  hght  parts  of 
the  picture  appear  dark,  and  the  dark  parts  light  in 
transparency,  graduated  according  to  the  different 
shades  of  tone  in  the  original.  The  next  and  most 
prominent  feature  is  the  printing  plate.  A  per- 
fectly even  glass,  copper,  or  zinc  plate  is  covered 
on  the  surface  with  a  solution  of  fine  gelatine  and 
bichromate  of  potassium,  and  dried.  This  print- 
ing plate  is  then  placed  under  a  negative  and  ex- 
posed to  the  light.  The  action  of  the  light  on  the 
bichromated  gelatine  forms  the  basis  of  this  pro- 
cess. In  proportion  to  the  graduated  density  of 
the  negative,  the  light  acts  more  or  less  on  the 
bichromated  gelatine,  rendering  the  latter,  in  pro- 
portion, insoluble  and  hardening  it.  After  suffi- 
cient exposure  the  plate  is  washed  out  in  water  to 
eliminate  the  bichromate  not  acted  upon  by  the 
light,  and  is  then  actually  ready  for  the  press. 

If  the  printing  is  to  be  done  on  a  hand  press,  a 
lithographic  leather  roller  is  charged  with  printer's 
ink,  and  the  plate,  which  has  been  fastened  on  a 
suitable  bed-plate  in  the  press,  is  rolled  up  while  it 
is  still  moist.  Those  parts  of  the  plate  which  were 
acted  upon  by  the  light  and  hardened,  repel  the 
200 


THE  GELATINE  PROCESS 

water  and  take  up  the  ink,  and  thus  all  the  gradu- 
ating tones,  up  to  the  high  lights  or  white  parts, 
which  have  not  been  affected  by  the  hght,  will 
take  the  ink  proportionately.  The  white  parts  of 
the  picture,  where  the  light  did  not  act  upon  the 
gelatine  during  the  exposure  under  the  negative, 
retain  the  natural  property  of  gelatine  to  absorb 
water,  and  consequently  repel  the  ink  altogether. 

From  the  foregoing  it  will  be  easy  to  understand 
that  a  certain  degree  of  moisture  in  the  plate  is 
necessary  to  get  a  correct  impression.  After  the 
leather  roller,  a  composition  roller,  such  as  is  used 
in  typographical  processes,  is  employed  to  make 
the  ink  smooth  and  give  the  fine  details  not  ob- 
tainable from  the  rough  surface  of  a  leather  roller. 
A  sheet  of  paper  is  then  placed  upon  the  plate  and 
by  pressure  the  ink  is  transferred  from  the  plate  to 
the  paper. 

The  printing,  in  former  years,  could  only  be  done 
on  hand  presses;  but  with  the  introduction  of  im- 
proved power  presses  especially  adapted  to  it  the 
process  itself  has  been  so  perfected  that  the  finest 
work  can  be  executed  on  them,  at  the  same  time 
insuring  greater  evenness  and  increased  (luantity 
of  production,  and  also  admitting  the  use  of  larger 
plates  than  would  be  })ossi})le  on  a  hand  press. 

The  prevailing  impression,  wiirnever  machinery 
is  employed  to  supersede  hand-work,  is  that  the 
production  is  incroasfd  to  siu'h  an  extent  as  to  re- 
duce the  cost  to  a  miniiruim,  but  in  the  gelatine 
201 


THE   BUILDING   OF  A   BOOK 

printing  process,  even  with  the  aid  of  power  presses, 
the  rapidity  of  printing  is  far  behind  the  possibili- 
ties of  the  hthographic  or  typographical  printing 
press,  and  the  process,  therefore,  is  only  apphcable 
to  works  of  art,  and  the  better  grade  of  illustrations 
in  literary  and  commercial  publications. 

The  lesser  rapidity  of  production  and  the  greater 
cost  is  balanced  by  the  quality,  where  this  item 
comes  into  consideration;  and  where  only  small 
editions  are  required,  even  the  cost  compares  fa- 
vorably with  other  methods,  as  the  initial  cost  of 
preparing  the  printing  plate  is  small  compared  with 
the  cost  of  photogravure  or  the  better  class  of  half- 
tone plate.  It  is  only  in  cases  of  large  editions 
of  many  thousands  that  the  advantage  of  rapid 
printing  reduces  the  cost  of  the  initial  expense. 
But  fine  art  publications  and  illustrations  will 
never  be  used  in  very  large  quantities,  and,  there- 
fore, there  is  a  large  field  for  the  photo-gelatine 
process  in  this  country,  where  it  is  as  yet  so  httle 
used.  In  France,  Germany,  and  Austria  there  are 
dozens  of  establishments  which  employ  ten  or  more 
power  presses  for  photo-gelatine  work,  while  here 
only  within  the  last  few  years  has  the  process 
been  sufficiently  appreciated  to  warrant  the  intro- 
duction of  a  few  steam  presses ;  and  these  have  to 
be  imported  from  abroad  at  a  high  rate  of  duty,  as 
the  present  demand  for  the  presses  does  not  make 
it  advisable  for  our  domestic  press  builders  to 
invest  in  their  construction,  especially  after  an 
202 


THE  GELATINE  PROCESS 

isolated  attempt  in  that  line,  misguided  by  inex- 
perienced and  unpractical  men,  which  turned  out 
to  be  a  total  failure. 

Notwithstanding  all  these  difficulties  and  obsta- 
cles, it  is  a  fact  that  the  photo-gelatine  process  has 
gained  ground  sufficiently  to  indicate  a  prosperous 
future,  as  its  products  are  becoming  more  widely 
known  and  appreciated. 


203 


LITHOGRAPHY 

By  Charles  Wilhelms 

As  an  embellishment  to  the  modern  book,  chro- 
mo-lithographed  illustrations  are  quite  popular  and 
in  some  cases  absolutely  necessary,  being  not  only 
attractive,  but  conveying  an  accurate  idea  of  the 
color  as  well  as  the  form  of  the  object  illustrated. 
Although  the  illustration  is  nothing  more  than  a 
colored  print,  it  may  be  a  revelation  to  some  when 
they  learn  of  the  numerous  details  incidental  to  its 
production. 

It  ma}^  not  be  generally  known,  and  yet  of  suffi- 
cient interest  to  the  reader  to  state  that  the  art 
of  lithography,  or  surface  printing,  was  invented 
accidentally.  The  inventor,  Aloys  Senefelder, 
had  been  engaged  for  years  endeavoring  to  find 
some  process  for  etching  copper  plates  as  a  substi- 
tute for  typographic  printing  plates ;  and  the  piece 
of  stone  (of  a  kind  now  known  as  Solenhofen  litho- 
graphic stone),  which  eventually  led  him  to  the 
discovery  of  lithography  had  been  used  by  him  as  a 
slab  upon  which  he  had  been  accustomed  to  grind 
his  printing  ink.  The  materials  which  he  used  for 
his  acid-resisting  mixture  while  etching  his  copper 
204 


LITHOGRAPHY 

plates  were  beeswax,  soap,  and  lampblack,  and  in 
selecting  these  materials  he  accidentally  invented 
the  basis  for  all  crayons  or  lithographic  "tusche" 
or  inks,  now  used  so  extensively  for  drawing 
on  stone.  It  seems  that  Senefelder  finally  became 
thoroughly  disheartened  about  his  etched  copper 
plates,  mainly  owing  to  the  great  expense  and 
labor  connected  with  their  production,  and  was 
about  to  discontinue  his  efforts  when  the  idea 
occurred  to  him  to  experiment  with  the  stone 
which  he  had  used  as  an  ink  slab  for  so  many 
months,  treating  it  in  the  same  manner  as  the 
copper  plates. 

He  knew  tliat  the  calcareous  stone  was  easily 
affected  by  acid  and  that  he  could  protect  its  sur- 
face against  it  by  a  layer  of  wax.  After  poHshing 
the  surface  of  the  stone  and  coating  it  with  a  slight 
layer  of  wax,  he  made  his  drawing  with  a  pointed 
tool,  laying  bare  the  surface  of  the  stone  where  he 
desired  the  engraving.  Then  applying  the  acid 
and  removing  tho  remaining  wax,  he  filled  the 
etched  Unos  with  printing  ink,  cleaned  the  surface 
of  the  stone  with  water,  and  was  enabled  to  obtain 
an  impression  on  paper  from  it.  This  manner  of 
treating  a  stone;  has  been  employed  by  vignette 
engravers  for  many  years,  but  of  late  has  become 
obsolete.  The  result  gave  encouragement  to 
Senefelder  and  induced  him  to  renew  his  experi- 
ments, when  he  was  accidentally  led  a  step  farther 
in  the  direction  of  surface  or  chr-mical  printing. 
205 


THE  BUILDING  OF  A   BOOK 

Senef elder  had  just  ground  and  polished  a  stone, 
when  his  mother  entered  the  room  and  asked  him 
to  take  a  memorandum  of  some  clothes  which  she 
was  about  to  send  away  to  be  laundered.  Having 
neither  paper  nor  ink  at  hand,  he  hastily  wrote  the 
items  with  a  pen,  dipped  in  his  acid-resisting  mix- 
ture, upon  the  stone  which  had  just  been  polished. 
When  he  afterwards  started  to  wipe  the  writing 
from  the  stone,  it  occurred  to  him  that  it  might  be 
possible  to  reverse  his  process  by  etching  the  sur- 
face of  the  stone,  leaving  the  writing  or  drawing  in 
relief,  which  could  be  printed  from  in  the  same 
manner  as  from  type.  He  was  fairly  successful  in 
this,  and  after  many  disappointments  and  much 
hardship,  he  eventually  succeeded  in  interesting  a 
capitaHst,  with  whose  assistance  he  was  enabled  to 
estabhsh  his  new  relief  stone  process  on  a  com- 
mercial basis. 

The  process,  however,  was  at  best  only  an  im- 
perfect one,  and  it  seems  strange  that  the  final  dis- 
covery of  surface  or  lithographic  printing  should 
have  been  so  long  delayed,  when  Senefelder  was 
in  reality  so  near  it,  when  he  first  poured  the  acid 
over  the  stone  containing  his  laundry  memoran- 
dum. If  he  had  instantly  washed  off  the  acid 
and  cleaned  the  surface  of  the  stone  with  water,  he 
might  have  proceeded  to  print  thousands  of  impres- 
sions by  simply  keeping  the  surface  of  the  stone 
moist  while  passing  the  ink  roller  or  dabber  over  it, 
then  drying  and  taking  an  impression,  and  repeat- 
206 


LITHOGRAPHY 

ing  this  operation  indefinitely.  It  is  not  surprising, 
therefore,  that  a  man  of  such  persistence  and  capa- 
bility as  Senefelder  should  eventually  thscover  the 
best  method  for  drawing  and  printing  from  stone ; 
for  it  is  a  fact  that,  since  he  perfected  his  invention, 
more  than  a  hundred  years  ago,  it  has  been  hardly 
possible  to  improve  on  his  methods,  so  completely 
did  he  cover  the  entire  field  of  manipulation  in  this 
direction.  Continuing  his  experiments,  Senefelder 
finally  found  that  the  calcareous  stone  absorbed  and 
held  grease,  and  that  it  just  as  readily  absorbed 
water,  where  the  surface  was  exposed  and  clean; 
that  any  design  drawn  or  transferred  with  a  greasy 
crayon  or  ink  upon  a  cleanly  poHshod  stone  would 
be  firmly  held,  after  being  slightly  etched ;  and  that 
after  such  a  stone  had  been  moistened,  it  could  be 
inked  with  rollers,  the  ink  adhering  only  to  the 
greasy  matter  constituting  the  design  (although  it 
did  not  stand  out  in  the  relief)  and  that  the  ink 
rollers  would  not  smut  the  stone,  the  ink  being 
repelled  by  the  water  or  moisture  covering  its 
surface.  Upon  this  principle  of  chemical  afl^nity, 
the  adherence  of  greasy  substances  to  each  other 
and  the  mutual  antipathy  of  grease  and  water,  the 
art  of  lithographic  printing  is  based. 

The  mothods  or  processes  now  employed  in  re- 
producing oil-paintings,  colored  photographs,  or 
water-colors  by  lithography  are  numerous,  and 
requiro  great  skill  and  fxpcrionce,  not  only  on  the 
part  of  the  lithographic  artist,  but  also  on  the  part 
207 


THE  BUILDING  OF  A   BOOK 

of  the  printer.  Photography  has  of  late  years  been 
used  to  a  great  extent  in  creating  the  basis  of  the 
color  plates,  to  be  afterwards  perfected  by  the 
manipulation  of  the  experienced  chromo-Uthog- 
rapher. 

To  insure  a  satisfactory  result  the  first  essential 
is,  of  course,  a  good  original,  which  can  be  made 
in  water-color,  oil,  or  pastel.  The  number  of 
printings  to  be  employed  should  be  predetermined 
and  a  color  scale  adopted.  The  lithographer 
must  carefully  analyze  the  original  painting,  mak- 
ing his  calculations  as  to  the  best  way  of  obtaining 
the  desired  color  effects  by  a  judicious  selection 
and  use  of  his  colors,  and  the  superimposing  of 
one  printing  over  the  other,  so  as  to  obtain  true 
color  values.  It  must  be  remembered  that,  while 
the  average  painter  has  an  unlimited  variety  of 
pigments  at  his  disposal,  the  lithographer  is  in 
this  respect  very  much  at  a  disadvantage,  not 
usually  having  more  than  from  six  to  fourteen 
colors  with  which  to  produce  a  facsimile  of  the 
original. 

The  first  step  is  the  making  of  the  so-called  key- 
plate.  A  piece  of  gelatine  is  laid  on  the  original, 
which  is,  let  us  say  by  way  of  illustration,  a  water- 
color  to  be  reproduced  in  ten  printings,  and  a  care- 
ful tracing  of  the  original  is  made  by  scratching, 
with  an  engraving  needle,  the  outline  of  each  wash 
or  touch  of  color  composing  the  picture.  This  be- 
ing completed,  the  lithographic  ink  (tusche)  or 
208 


LITHOGRAPHY 

transfer  ink  is  carefully  rubbed  into  the  tracing, 
which  is  laid  face  down  on  a  polished  lithographic 
stone,  slightly  moistened,  and  passed  through  a 
hand  press;  thereby  transferring  the  ink  from  the 
engraved  lines  to  the  polished  surface  of  the  stone. 
The  design  on  the  stone  is  then  rolled  in  with 
black  printing  ink  and  etched,  thus  enabling  the 
lithographer  to  take  the  necessary  ten  impressions 
of  the  key-plate.  These,  in  their  turn,  are  again 
transferred  to  as  many  lithographic  stones.  This 
is  accomplished  by  dustmg  the  impressions  with 
a  red  powder,  which  adheres  only  to  the  design 
printed  on  the  sheet.  The  powdered  outline  de- 
sign is  then  transferred  to  the  surface  of  the  stone 
by  passing  both  through  a  hand  press.  Tlie  key 
has  been  previously  provided  with  register  marks 
(a  short  horizontal  line  intersected  by  a  vertical 
one)  at  top,  bottom,  and  both  sides.  These  are  of 
the  utmost  importance  to  the  prover,  and  finally 
to  the  transferrer,  who  prepares  the  work  for  the 
press,  as  without  them  it  would  be  impossible  to 
register  one  color  over  the  other  in  its  proper 
place.  At  any  stage  of  the  process,  the  register 
marks  of  all  ten  colors,  which  have  boon  miuU; 
in  succession  on  a  single  shoot  of  paper,  should 
coincide  precisely  and  appear  as  a  single  maik  in 
the  form  of  a  small  cross. 

The  lithographor  now  has  before  him   tho   ton 
stones,  each  stamped  with  the  identical  network 
of  lines  in   red   chalk  representing  his  key.     He 
•209 


THE  BUILDING  OF  A  BOOK 

proceeds  to  draw  each  color-plate  successively, 
at  all  times  adhering  closely  to  the  red  chalk  out- 
lines, filling  in  with  tusche  where  full  strength  of 
the  color  is  required  and  using  lithographic  crayon 
or  the  stipple  process  to  reproduce  the  various 
gradations  of  this  color  in  order  to  secure  the 
full  color  value  of  each  printing.  The  register 
marks  are  ruled  in  on  each  stone  corresponding 
to  those  on  the  key,  so  that  the  prover  or  prmter 
has  these  marks  in  the  same  identical  position  on 
each  and  every  color  as  a  guide  for  register. 

As  each  stone  is  finished  it  is  etched;  that  is, 
treated  with  a  weak  solution  of  nitric  acid  and 
gum-water,  in  order  to  remove  all  accidental 
traces  of  scum  from  its  surface,  and  to  prepare  it 
for  printing.  Then  proofs  are  made,  which  serve 
as  a  guide  to  the  lithographer  during  the  progress 
of  his  work,  and  finally  as  a  guide  to  the  trans- 
ferrer and  to  the  printer.  The  proving  is  done  on 
a  hand  press,  and  it  is  here  that  we  have  our  first 
glimpse  of  chemical  printing,  which,  notwithstand- 
ing its  simplicity,  seems  so  mysterious  to  one  un- 
initiated in  its  secrets. 

The  writer  recollects  his  own  first  experience. 
A  stone  had  just  been  placed  fresh  from  the  etch- 
ing trough  in  the  bed  of  the  press,  when,  to  his 
amazement,  the  prover  deliberately  proceeded  to 
eliminate  every  trace  of  the  drawing  with  a  sponge 
saturated  with  turpentine.  After  drying  the  stone 
by  means  of  a  fan,  he  passed  over  the  surface  a 
210 


LITHOGRAPHY 

sponge  soaked  in  water,  then  applied  black  ink 
with  a  roller,  when  behold,  the  drawing  was  re- 
stored in  its  entirety.  The  solution  is  very 
simple:  the  greasy  matter  is  absorbed  and  held 
by  the  stone  and  in  its  turn  repels  water  and 
attracts  grease. 

An  impression  is  made  with  black  printing  ink 
on  paper  by  passing  it  through  the  hand  press. 
The  black  impression  approved  of  by  the  lithog- 
rapher, the  stone  is  again  cleaned  with  turpen- 
tine and  proved  in  the  color  required,  and  so  with 
each  color-plate,  imtil  the  proof  is  complete. 
When  photography  is  employed,  the  half-tone 
negative  takes  the  place  of  the  key.  Prints  are 
made  from  a  reversed  negative  on  the  sensitized 
surface  of  the  stone,  or  on  as  many  stones  as 
the  color-plates  require,  and  then  manipulated  by 
the  lithographer,  who  adds  or  modifies  strength 
with  his  "  tusche"  or  crayon,  and  scrapes  or  washes 
out  lights  where  necessary.  The  various  modes 
of  procedure  are  too  diverse  to  enter  into  here, 
but  it  may  be  well  to  mention  that  the  principal 
ones  are  the  albumen,  the  asphaltuni,  and  finally 
the  three-color  process,  the  latter  differing  but 
little  as  far  as  the  artistic  part  of  the  work  is  con- 
cerned from  that  eini)loyod  for  making  relief 
printing  plates  for  the  typographic  press. 

The  original  drawing  plates,  or  stones,  are  not 
used  to  print  from  direct  unless  the  edition  be 
very  small.  Just  as  (he  tyijographic  printer  uses 
211 


THE  BUILDING  OF  A   BOOK 

electrotypes  in  place  of  the  original  type  or  cuts, 
the  lithographer  makes  transfers  from  the  original 
stones  to  print  his  edition  and  carefully  preserves 
the  original  stones  for  future  editions.  The  trans- 
fers are  prepared  in  a  very  simple  manner.  The 
original  stones  are  rolled  over  with  a  specially 
prepared  transfer  ink,  and  impressions  are  taken 
from  them  on  a  paper,  known  under  the  name  of 
transfer  paper,  coated  with  a  sizing  of  starch,  flour, 
and  glycerine.  By  printing  from  the  original, 
only  one  copy  can  be  produced  at  each  impression, 
whereas  by  using  transfers  a  number  of  copies  of 
the  original  can  be  printed  at  one  impression.  For 
example,  if  the  picture  measures  8  x  10  inches  of 
paper,  a  transfer  can  be  made  containing  fifteen 
copies  on  one  sheet  measuring  30  x  40  inches.  In 
this  case  fifteen  impressions  are  made  from  the 
key-plate  as  well  as  from  each  of  the  color-plates, 
on  the  paper,  and  with  the  ink  described  above. 
The  first  transfer  to  be  made  is  that  of  the  key- 
plate.  The  fifteen  impressions  are  laid  in  their 
proper  positions  on  a  sheet  of  paper  of  the  re- 
quired size,  and  are  held  in  position  on  same  by 
indentations  made  with  a  dull-pointed  steel  tool. 
The  sheet  is  laid  face  down  upon  a  cleanly  polished 
stone,  which  is  then  repeatedly  pulled  through  a 
hand  press  until  all  the  ink  has  been  transferred 
from  the  paper  to  the  surface  of  the  stone.  The 
transfer  paper  still  adhering  to  the  stone  is  then 
moistened  and  washed  off  the  stone,  leaving  the 
212 


LITHOGRAPHY 

design  completely  transferred  to  the  stone.  A 
slight  solution  of  gum  arable  and  water  is  then 
applied,  the  stone  washed  clean,  and  after  being 
repeatedly  rolled  in  with  printing  mk  and  etched, 
is  ready  for  printing.  An  impression  is  then  made 
in  the  usual  manner  from  this  key-transfer,  which 
impression  is  coated  with  a  solution  of  shellac. 
This  is  done  for  the  purpose  of  rendering  it  im- 
pervious to  the  effect  of  the  atmosphere,  thus  in- 
suring against  its  stretching  or  shrinking.  Upon 
this  varnished  key-sheet  all  subsequent  transfer 
impressions  of  the  ten  colors  are  "stuck  up,"  to 
use  the  technical  term,  and  transferred  to  stone  in 
the  same  manner  as  is  employed  in  the  making  of 
the  key-transfer.  Tlie  register  marks  serve  as  a 
guide  in  "sticking  up"  the  separate  transfer  im- 
pressions and  insure  an  accurate  register  of  the 
colors  laid  over  each  other  during  the  process  of 
printing.  New  register  marks  are  placed  upon  the 
key-transfer  at  top,  bottom,  and  sides  similar  to 
those  on  the  original  (which  are  removed  from  the 
transfer),  and  these  new  marks  now  appear  on  all 
color  transfers  to  serve  as  a  guide  to  (he  steam- 
press  printer  in  printing  his  edition.  He  likewise 
uses  the  hand-press  proofs  of  tlio  picture  as  a 
guide  in  mixing  his  inks. 

The   lithographic   power   printing  press  is  con- 
structed on  the  same  general  principle  as  the  ordi- 
nary typographic  press,  excepting  that  it  is  pro- 
vided with  an  apparatus  for  moistening  the  stone 
213 


THE  BUILDING  OF  A  BOOK 

previous  to  the  application  of  the  ink  rollers.  The 
stone  containing  the  design  is  placed  in  the  bed 
of  the  press,  and  the  moisture,  as  well  as  the  ink, 
is  applied  by  means  of  rollers  similar  to  those  used 
in  the  typographic  printing  press.  All  the  ten 
colors  are  now  successively  printed  from  the  trans- 
fers on  a  steam  press,  and  if  it  is  a  perfect  job,  the 
pictures  can  be  cut  to  size  and  delivered  to  the 
pubUsher. 

At  present  the  cumbrous  stone  and  the  slow- 
moving  flat-bed  press  are  being  supplanted  by  the 
light  and  pUable  aluminum  plates  and  the  fast- 
moving  rotary  presses.  The  aluminum  plate 
has  all  the  requisites  for  the  highest  grades  of 
lithographic  or  surface  printing,  and  the  rotary 
press  is  beyond  doubt  a  vast  improvement  over 
the  flat-bed  press,  not  only  as  to  speed,  but  also 
as  to  the  quality  and  uniformity  of  its  product. 
The  mode  of  procedure  in  making  transfers  to 
aluminum  plates  is  much  the  same  as  that  em- 
ployed in  making  transfers  to  stone.  The  plia- 
bility of  the  aluminum  plate  and  the  ease  with 
which  it  can  be  adjusted  to  a  printing  cylinder  has 
resulted  in  the  successful  introduction  and  use  of 
two-  and  three-color  lithographic  rotary  presses, 
printing  at  one  operation  two  or  three  colors. 
It  has  been  demonstrated  that  the  result  is  fully 
equal  to  that  obtained  from  the  single-color  press, 
provided  good  judgment  be  used  as  to  the  succes- 
sion of  the  colors  or  printings.  This  marks  a  new 
214 


LITHOGRAPHY 

epoch  in  the  art  of  lithography  and  enables  it  to 
compete  with  the  typographic  three-color  process, 
which  has  been  making  such  wonderful  progress 
during  the  last  five  years,  and  at  one  time  seriously 
threatened  lithography  as  a  medium  for  the  re- 
production of  certain  classes  of  colored  illustrations. 
Our  experience  teaches  us,  however,  that  the 
surface  or  lithographic  and  the  relief  or  typo- 
graphic method  will  never  seriously  interfere  with 
each  other,  but  on  the  contrary  by  actively  com- 
peting in  all  matter  relating  to  the  reproductive 
art  will  continue  to  improve  their  respective 
methods,  and  thus  enable  them  to  satisfy  the  con- 
tinually increasing  demands  on  the  part  of  the 
public  for  colored  illustrations,  not  only  as  to  the 
quantity  but  particularly  as  to  the  quality  thereof. 


215 


COVER    DESIGNING 
By  Amy  Richards 

So  many  books  of  the  present  day  have  decora- 
tive book  covers  especially  designed  to  fit  each 
book  that  many  people  who  buy  the  books  are 
beginning  to  ask  what  suggests  these  designs  and 
how  they  are  executed. 

Having  made  book-cover  designs  for  a  number 
of  years,  I  have  been  asked  to  write  a  practical 
account  of  how  these  book  covers  are  made,  which 
will  give  an  answer  to  some  of  these  questions. 
This  account  will  have  no  bearing  on  the  designs 
used  on  hand-bound  books  with  their  beautiful 
"tooled"  covers.  These  are  a  different  branch 
of  the  art  altogether  from  the  so-called  "  commer- 
cial bindings"  which  I  am  about  to  describe.  The 
designs  for  these  tooled  covers  are  as  a  rule  made 
by  the  same  hands  that  bind  the  books. 

Every  year  hundreds  of  books  are  published  that 
need  "commercial"  book  covers.  In  many  cases 
these  covers  are  used  to  help  sell  the  book;  that 
is,  they  must  be  attractive  enough  to  draw  attention 
to  the  book  as  it  lies  on  the  counter  in  the  book- 
shops and  other  places  where  the  book  is  on  sale. 
216 


COVER  DESIGNING 

Some  publishers  have  artists,  regularly  employed, 
to  make  their  own  designs  exclusively;  but  as  a 
rule  each  pubHsher  keeps  in  touch  with  a  number 
of  designers,  sending  for  one  or  the  other  as  the 
needs  of  a  particular  book  require.  When  a 
design  is  needed,  the  particular  sort  of  cover  re- 
quired is  discussed  with  the  pubhsher,  the  number 
of  colors  that  can  be  used  is  mentioned,  also  the 
exact  dimensions  of  the  book  and  the  material 
to  be  used  in  binding  the  book.  Almost  every 
designer  prefers  to  read  the  manuscript  of  the 
book,  if  possible,  or  to  have  a  synopsis  of  it,  for, 
naturally,  he  can  make  a  much  more  suitable 
and  successful  cover  if  he  has  a  complete  idea  of 
the  subject  of  the  book. 

Having  read  the  book,  or  having  been  told  what 
it  is  about,  the  designer  makes  one  or  more  rough 
sketches  in  color,  giving  a  general  idea  of  the  book 
cover,  both  as  to  design,  color  scheme,  and  mate- 
rial to  be  used  in  binding.  If  one  of  these  sketches 
is  selected,  the  designer  then  makes  an  accurate 
"working"  drawing,  either  in  color,  or  black  and 
white.  If  a  black-and-white  drawing  is  made, 
a  rough  color  sketch  is  sent  with  it  to  indicate 
how  the  die  is  to  be  cut. 

A  finished  book-cover  design  can  be  made  on 
water-color  paper,  bristol-board,  or  a  piece  of 
book-cover  linen.  This  last  method  is  popular 
with  pul)lishers,  as  it  shows  them  how  the  cover 
will  look  when  finished.  A  designer  keeps  sample 
217 


THE  BUILDING  OF  A   BOOK 

books  of  all  the  most  popular  book-binding  mate- 
rials, which  the  manufacturers  are  glad  to  supply. 
A  practical  designer  always  chooses  for  the  ground 
color  of  a  design  a  cloth  that  is  to  be  found  at  one 
of  the  regular  book-cloth  manufacturers. 

When  a  book-cover  design  is  finished,  it  is  neatly 
mounted  on  cardboard  and  a  careful  note  is  writ- 
ten on  the  margin,  telhng  how  the  design  is  to  be 
executed  by  the  binder,  the  kind  of  cloth  to  be 
used,  and  its  number  in  a  particular  sample  book. 
Unless  the  design  is  executed  on  a  piece  of  book 
cloth,  a  sample  of  the  cloth  desired  is  pasted  under 
the  directions.  The  design  is  then  cut  in  brass 
by  a  die  cutter,  as  described  in  the  next  chapter, 
and  the  covers  are  stamped  in  gold  or  inks  from 
this  die  by  the  binder.  The  design  must  be  the 
exact  size  of  the  future  book  or  drawn  larger  in 
exact  proportion  for  reduction  to  the  proper  size. 

Gold  is  of  course  the  most  expensive  way  of 
reproducing  a  cover  design,  and  a  publisher  gen- 
erally tries  to  get  as  good  an  effect  as  possible 
without  the  use  of  gold,  or  he  limits  its  use  to 
the  title  Unes  or  to  a  small  part  of  the  design. 
Four  inks  is  usually  the  extreme  number  used, 
and  more  often  only  two  or  three  are  used,  or  gold 
and  one  ink. 

Several  styles  of  decoration  are  used  in  design- 
ing book  covers;  but  they  may  be  put  roughly 
into  two  classes,  —  those  that  are  purely  ornamen- 
tal  and   those   that   are   pictorial.     Personally  I 

218 


COVER  DESIGNING 

am  in  favor  of  the  purely  ornamental  cover,  as 
being  more  dignified;  but  there  are  books  that 
seem  to  require  a  pictorial  cover  that  is  treated 
somewhat  in  the  fashion  of  a  decorative  poster. 

A  book-cover  designer  to  be  successful  should 
be  very  versatile  and  able  to  make  use  of  figures 
as  well  as  thoroughly  versed  in  the  use  of  orna- 
ment. 

One  of  the  most  important  parts  of  a  book 
cover  is  the  title,  to  which  the  amateur  and  inex- 
perienced designer  does  not  always  give  sufficient 
attention.  The  title  must  be  clearly  drawn  and 
everything  else  in  the  cover  made  subservient  to 
it,  so  that  the  first  thing  the  eye  falls  on  is  the 
title.  For  this  reason  a  thorough  study  of  letter- 
ing is  necessary  for  the  successful  cover  designer, 
and  much  practice  in  order  to  become  proficient. 
A  very  successful  cover  may  be  due  simply  to  a 
well-selected  cloth  with  lettering  properly  drawn 
and  placed  so  that  the  eye  is  perfectly  satisfied 
and  the  whole  has  an  air  of  distinction.  Each 
designer  grows  insensibly  into  his  or  her  own 
particular  style,  which  those  who  are  interested 
in  book  covers  grow  to  know ;  but  the  more  varied 
his  style  the  more  in  demand  will  be  the  designer. 

The  designing  of  book  covers  is  a  minor  art, 
but  since  there  is  a  constant  demand  for  orna- 
mented covers,  the  more  taste  and  skill  that  can 
be  devotf'd  to  the  making  of  them,  the  better. 
When  one  looks  back  to  the  covers  of  fifteen  years 
219 


THE  BUILDING  OF  A   BOOK 

ago,  one  realizes  what  an  advance  has  been  made, 
and  that  the  standard  has  been  raised  higher 
and  higher,  until  at  the  present  time  many  a 
famous  illustrator  or  decorative  painter  occasion- 
ally turns  his  or  her  hand  to  the  designing  of 
book  covers. 


220 


THE  COVER   STAMPS 
By  George  Becker 

Not  many  years  ago  the  crudest  and  most 
primitive  devices  were  used  in  the  production  of 
a  book  cover.  The  artist,  if  such  he  could  be 
called,  who  was  responsible  for  the  design,  seldom 
went  to  the  trouble  of  furnishing  the  engraver  with 
anything  more  than  a  pencil  sketch,  which  the 
latter  transferred  to  a  brass  plate  about  one-quar- 
ter of  an  inch  thick  by  coating  the  plate  with 
beeswax  and  laying  the  sketch  on  it,  face  down- 
ward. When  the  paper  was  removed  the  beeswax 
retained  the  marks  of  the  lead  pencil.  He  then 
began  the  tedious  process  of  outlining  it  by  hand 
with  a  graver  and  afterward  finished  it  with  a 
chisel. 

But  the  exacting  demands  of  modern  artistic 
taste,  the  irnproveineut  of  scientific  nicthods  and 
the  pressure  of  competition  have  marked  a  com- 
plete transformation  in  the  business  of  making 
dies  for  book  covers.  A  few  pencils  and  gravers, 
a  vise  bench,  and  a  grindstone  no  longer  make 
an  engraving  establishment.  Colored  sketches  of 
221 


THE  BUILDING  OF  A  BOOK 

most  painstaking  execution,  accompanied  by  a 
working  drawing  in  black  and  white,  have  taken 
the  place  of  the  old  pencil  sketch.  These  artistic 
productions,  having  passed  the  ordeal  of  critical 
examination,  are  handed  over  to  the  photographer, 
who,  if  he  understands  his  part,  does  all  that  the 
beeswax  did,  and  a  good  deal  more.  He  takes 
the  black-and-white  drawing  above  referred  to 
and  reproduces  it,  in  the  size  desired,  directly  on 
a  brass  plate  covered  with  a  sensitive  coating,  and 
then  having  prepared  it  with  acid-proof  prepara- 
tions, he  passes  it  over  to  the  etcher. 

The  etcher  in  his  turn,  with  unerring  judgment 
in  the  strength  of  his  acids,  does  what  the  most 
careful  outliner  could  not  accomplish ;  he  produces 
a  perfect  facsimile  of  the  original  drawing,  with 
all  its  artistic  freedom.  The  process  used  is  practi- 
cally the  same  as  the  zinc  etching  process  de- 
scribed in  the  chapter  on  half-tones  and  line  plates. 
The  plate,  having  been  etched  as  deep  as  is  safe, 
is  then  turned  over  to  the  router,  whose  business 
it  is  to  cut  out  all  the  metal  between  ornaments 
and  lettering  to  the  proper  depth.  This  done,  the 
engraver,  who  in  former  years  practically  dug  out 
the  entire  plate  with  his  hand  tools,  comes  in  to 
give  the  finishing  touches  and  correct  any  slight 
imperfection  that  may  remain.  It  is  of  the  utmost 
importance,  of  course,  that  the  dies  should  be 
clear-cut  and  deep,  to  avoid  clogging  up  in  print- 
ing, particularly  in  the  plates  used  for  stamping 
222 


THE  COVER  STAMPS 

in  inks.  The  experienced  and  watchful  engraver 
is  expected  to  detect  any  spots  where  the  etching 
process  has  not  fully  accompUshed  its  purpose. 
Lettering,  especially,  should  be  cut  clear,  deep, 
and  free  from  "feather,"  or  ragged  edges. 

The  above  process  applies  to  single  plates  or  to 
plates  intended  for  printing  in  one  color  only, 
or  in  gold.  Where  two  or  more  colors  are 
wanted,  the  photographer  has  to  make  as  many 
prints  as  there  are  colors  in  the  artist's  design,  as 
each  one  calls  for  a  separate  plate.  The  proceed- 
ing otherwise  remains  the  same,  excepting  that  to 
the  engraver's  task  is  added  the  necessity  of  mak- 
ing sure  of  a  perfect  register  or  fitting  together  of 
the  various  parts. 

Tlie  transformation  in  the  demands  of  publishers 
and  writers  has  become  so  great  since  the  days  of 
the  primitive  little  shop  above  referred  to,  that  a 
die  cutter,  working  on  those  linos,  would  be  hope- 
lessly out  of  the  race  at  the  present  day.  In  order 
to  meet  satisfactorily  the  artistic  expectation  of 
the  present  generation  a  first-class  engraving  es- 
tablishment must  have :  an  accomplished  staff  of 
artists,  supplied  with  a  library  of  standard  author- 
ities on  the  various  schools  of  art,  as  well  as  a 
good  selection  of  modern  art  publications;  a 
skilled  photographer  with  a  complete  photographic 
outfit,  including,  of  course,  a  suitablo  gallery  with 
the  best  obtainable  light,  i)oth  natural  and  arti- 
ficial; and  lastly  a  complete  stafi"  of  routers  and 
223 


THE  BUILDING  OF  A   BOOK 

engravers,  some  of  whom  should  be  speciaUsts  in 
lettering,  while  others  should  devote  their  atten- 
tion exclusively  to  figures. 

Of  all  the  elements  that  go  to  make  book-cover 
decoration  the  lettering  is  by  far  the  most  impor- 
tant. It  should  receive  special  care,  as  in  some 
cases  it  constitutes  the  entire  decoration.  In  this 
respect  the  critical  taste  of  the  present  day  shows 
itself  even  more  strongly  than  in  the  matter  of 
decorative  ornamentation,  and  no  amount  of 
ornamentation,  whatever  its  artistic  value,  can 
redeem  a  cover  whose  lettering  is  lacking  in 
style,  character,  or  typographical  merit  of  some 
kind.  Experience  is  such  a  good  teacher  that  I 
can  usually  tell,  by  looking  at  a  die,  not  only 
who  designed  the  lettering,  but  also  what  work- 
man engraved  it. 

Some  dies  are  intended  for  stam.ping  in  gold  or 
colored  leaf  and  consequently  have  to  be  heated 
sufficiently  to  cause  the  leaf  to  adhere  to  the  cloth 
cover,  while  others  are  meant  simply  for  black 
stamping  or  stamping  in  ink  of  various  colors; 
but  all  are  engraved  on  brass  for  the  sake  of 
durability.  Sometimes,  where  very  large  editions 
are  expected,  as  of  school  books,  steel  is  substi- 
tuted for  brass. 

The  die,  when  finished,  is  used  by  the  binder  in 
a  stamping  press.  Color  work  calls  for  consider- 
able skill  on  the  part  of  the  stamper,  who  should 
be  an  expert  in  mixing  inks  as  the  best-cut  die 
224 


THE  COVER  STAMPS 

will  often  show  poor  results  if  not  properly  handled. 
In  fact,  the  success  of  a  book  cover  depends  on 
three  individuals,  —  the  artist  who  designs  it,  the 
engraver  who  cuts  it,  and  the  stamper  who 
prints  it. 


225 


BOOK  CLOTHS 
By  Henry  P.  Kendall 

The  great  increase  in  the  number  of  books 
produced  each  year  has  brought  a  corresponding 
development  in  the  use  of  prepared  cloth  for  the 
bindings.  Previous  to  the  beginning  of  the  last 
century  cloth  was  almost  unknown  as  a  material 
for  covering  a  book.  Books  were  then  very 
costly.  They  were  printed  laboriously  by  hand, 
on  paper  also  made  by  hand,  and  were  naturally 
considered  worthy  of  the  most  lasting  bindings. 
As  the  Ufe  of  books  depends  on  the  strength  and 
wearing  quahty  of  the  covers,  such  materials  as 
wood,  vellum,  and  leather,  often  reenforced  with 
metal,  were  generally  used. 

The  nineteenth  century  has  marked  a  great 
progress  in  the  variety  and  quantity,  if  not  in  the 
quality,  of  pubhshed  books.  Improvements  in 
methods  and  in  machinery  have  progressed  side 
by  side  with  economies  in  paper  making.  As  the 
cost  of  producing  the  printed  sheets  became  less, 
a  demand  arose  for  a  correspondingly  cheaper 
material  for  bindings.  The  want  was  satisfacto- 
rily met  by  the  use  of  cloth,  and  from  the  day  that 
226 


BOOK  CLOTHS 

it  was  first  used  it  has  become  more  and  more  a 
factor  in  book  manufacturing. 

When  so  commonplace  a  binding  material  as 
cloth  was  selected,  artists  and  binders  and  pub- 
^  Ushers  considered  that  ornamentation  on  such  a 
material  was  almost  a  waste  of  time  and  money. 
So  the  libraries  of  oiu  grandfathers  contained 
rows  of  gloomy  and  unattractive  books,  bound  in 
black  cloth  stamped  in  old-fashioned  designs,  with 
a  back  title  of  lemon  gold,  and  it  is  only  compara- 
tively a  few  years  ago  that  binding  in  cloth  began 
to  be  considered  worthy  of  the  attention  of  the 
designer  and  the  artist,  but  since  then  the  demand 
for  a  more  varied  assortment  and  a  wider  choice 
of  colors  and  patterns  has  been  steadily  growing. 

Let  us  consider  briefly  the  different  kinds  of 
book  cloths  that  are  most  commonly  used  to-day 
and  try  to  make  clear  to  the  lay  reader  the  differ- 
ent fabrics,  whose  nomenclature  is  so  frequently 
confused  even  by  binders  and  publishers. 

Book  cloths,  from  their  appearance  and  manu- 
facture, fall  into  two  natural  divisions,  the  first 
being  the  so-called  "solid  colors,"  in  which  the 
threads  of  the  clotli  are  not  easily  distinguish- 
able. This  division  contains  two  grades  of  cloth, 
generally  known  as  common  colors  and  extra 
colors.  ITie  standard  widtli  of  all  book  cloths 
is  thirty-eight  inches.  The  conmions  and  extras 
are  sold  by  tlie  roll,  and  the  standard  number  of 
yards  to  the  roll  of  these  fabrics  is  thirty-eight. 
227 


THE  BUILDING  OF  A  BOOK 

The  second  division  consists  of  the  so-called 
"linens"  and  "buckrams,"  in  which  each  thread, 
with  the  imperfections  and  pecuUarities  of  the 
weaving,  are  plainly  seen  and  form  a  large  part  of 
their  picturesque  efTect. 

The  first  of  the  "common  colors"  to  be  used  was 
the  black  cloth  already  referred  to,  but  they  are 
now  made  in  many  colors,  though  chiefly  in  simple, 
pronounced  shades,  such  as  browns,  blues,  greens, 
and  reds.  These  cloths  have  been  dyed,  and 
sized  with  a  stiffening  preparation.  They  are  the 
cheapest  of  the  solid  colors  and  are  used  in  various 
patterns,  which  are  embossed  on  the  surface 
during  the  process  of  manufacture. 

Tlie  ordinary  patterns  which  are  in  the  greatest 
use  to-day  are  designated  in  the  trade  by  letters. 
Perhaps  the  most  famihar  is  the  "T"  pattern, 
straight  parallel  ridges  or  striations,  about  forty 
to  the  inch,  and  running  across  the  cloth  from 
selvage  to  selvage.  When  properly  used,  these 
ribs  run  from  top  to  bottom  of  a  book  cover. 
For  this  reason  it  is  not  economical  to  use  the 
"T"  pattern  if  the  height  of  the  cover  is  not  a 
multiple  of  the  width  of  the  cloth,  as  it  results  in 
a  waste  of  cloth.  This  explains  why  the  cost  of 
the  book  bound  in  "T"  pattern  is  frequently 
somewhat  higher  than  the  same  book  bound  in 
another  pattern  of  the  same  cloth. 

A  similar  design  is  the  "S"  or  silk  pattern,  made 
up  of  finer  lines  running  diagonally  across  the 
228 


BOOK  CLOTHS 

cloth,  giving  the  surface  a  sheen  somewhat  re- 
sembling silk.  Also  in  common  use  are  a  group 
of  patterns  composed  of  small  irregular  dots  or 
points,  the  finest  of  which  is  known  as  the  "C" 
pattern,  a  coarser  pattern  of  similar  design,  the 
"J,"  and,  coarser  still,  the  "L,"  which  has  some- 
what the  appearance  of  the  coarse  grain  of  a  mo- 
rocco leather.  The  pattern  known  as  "H"  is 
a  simple  diamond  made  by  intersecting  diagonal 
lines  similar  to  the  ribs  of  the  "T"  pattern. 
Other  patterns  in  less  common  use  are  those  re- 
sembling morocco  leather,  pigskin,  and  patterns 
in  fancy  designs. 

Following  the  increased  use  of  the  common 
cloths,  attention  was  given  to  the  artistic  effects 
which  might  be  obtained  by  using  colored  inks 
and  gold  on  lettering  and  design,  and  also  to  the 
effect  obtained  by  pressure  of  hot  binders'  dies  or 
stamps  ujjon  covers  made  with  embossed  cloths, 
which  latter  process  is  known  in  binding  as  "blank- 
ing" or  "  blind  "  stamjiing. 

With  these  advances  in  the  art  of  cover  decora- 
tion came  the  demand  for  the  more  delicate 
tints  anrl  richer  shades  of  (ho  colors,  and  as  a 
result  finer  colors  (Jian  could  be  produced  in  the 
common  cloths  were,  introduced  to  meet  this 
demand;  (hose  fabrics  were  called  the  "extra" 
cloths.  They  have  a  solid,  smooth  surface,  more 
"body,"  and  arc  in  every  way  firmer  and  better 
fabrics,  and  more  costly,  too,  some  of  the  shades 
229 


THE  BUILDING  OF  A  BOOK 

costing  from  twenty  to  forty  per  cent  more  than 
the  common  cloths. 

Extra  cloths  are  used  largely  on  the  better  class 
of  bindings,  such  as  the  popular  fiction,  holiday 
books,  scientific  books,  and  books  of  reference, 
and  whenever  fine  coloring  or  a  better  appearance 
is  desired.  These  cloths  are  chiefly  used  in  the 
plain  fabric,  which  is  known  as  "vellum,"  and  in 
the  ''T,"  "S,"  and  "H"  patterns.  The  trained 
eye  easily  recognizes  extra  cloth  from  the  com- 
mon cloths,  by  the  appearance  of  the  surface; 
but  any  one  may  readily  distinguish  them  by  the 
appearance  of  the  back,  which  in  the  extra  cloths 
is  not  colored,  but  in  the  commons  is  the  same 
color  as  the  face. 

Of  the  second  division  of  cloths,  in  which  the 
appearance  of  the  threads  becomes  a  part  of  the 
effect,  there  are  first  the  "linen"  cloths.  The 
name  "hnen"  appUed  to  this  group  is  really  a 
misnomer,  for  many  laymen  are  led  to  think  that 
such  cloths  have  flax  as  a  foundation  and  are 
therefore  genuine  linens.  This  is  not  so,  for  there 
is  but  one  genuine  linen  book  cloth  to  be  had,  and 
that  is  a  coarse,  irregularly  woven  cloth,  dyed  in 
dull  colors,  and  manufactured  by  a  foreign  house. 
It  is  quite  expensive,  costing  sixty  cents  a  square 
yard,  which  is  one  of  the  reasons  why  it  is  seldom 
used. 

The  chief  characteristics  of  the  linen  cloths  are 
that  the  coloring  used  fills  the  interstices,  but 
230 


BOOK  CLOTHS 

allows  all  the  threads  to  be  clearly  seen.  The 
irregularities  of  the  weaving,  therefore,  stand  out 
plainly,  and  produce  to  a  certain  extent  the  appear- 
ance of  woven  hnen  fabrics. 

Linen  book  cloths  are  made  in  two  grades,  and 
are  sold  by  the  yard  under  special  names  given 
to  them  by  the  manufacturers.  The  cheaper 
grade  is  sold  under  the  name  of  "vellum  de  luxe," 
"X"  grade,  or  "Oxford."  A  better  grade  of 
Unen  book  cloth  sells  (in  1906)  at  about  sixteen 
cents  per  yard  under  the  names  "art  vellum," 
"B"  grade,  and  "hnen  finish."  It  is  a  very  dur- 
able fabric  and  extensively  used, 

Tlie  linen  cloths  are  made  principally  in  the  plain 
surface,  and  in  the  "T"  pattern,  but  almost  never 
in  any  other  patterns,  the  reason  for  this  being 
the  fact  that  the  character  of  the  cloth  is  very  little 
changed  by  the  embossing,  which  is  used  with 
greater  effect  on  the  solid  colors.  These  linen 
cloths  are  especially  adapted  for  school  and  other 
books  which  are  constantly  handled,  as  their 
construction  shows  the  wear  less  than  do  the 
solid  colors. 

Tlie  buckrams  might  have  been  properly 
cla.ssed  with  the  linens,  as  that  is  what,  in  fact, 
they  are.  Linen  cloth  observed  through  a  mi- 
croscope which  magnifies  the  threads  to  a  coarse- 
ness of  about  forty  to  the  inch  gives  us  the  exact 
appearance  of  the  buckram,  which  is  a  heavy, 
strong  cloth  well  adapted  to  largo  books,  and  which 
231 


THE  BUILDING  OF  A   BOOK 

furnishes  the  most  durable  binding  of  all  the  book 
cloths.  The  colors  of  buckrams  correspond  closely 
with  those  of  the  linens;  they  are  also  sold  under 
trade  names  given  them  by  manufacturers,  such  as 
"art  canvas"  and  "E"  grade. 

Buckrams  are  sometimes  embossed  to  imitate 
in  part  the  appearance  of  an  irregularly  woven 
fabric  called  "crash."  Crash  is  a  special  cloth 
which  might  properly  be  classed  with  the  buckrams, 
and  when  suitably  used  is  a  very  artistic  material. 

Basket  cloth  is  still  another  material  which 
could  properly  be  included  with  the  buckrams. 
This  grade  of  cloth  gains  its  name  from  the  fact 
that  the  threads  are  woven  in  squares  resembling  a 
basket  mesh.  They  are  made  in  the  same  coloring 
as  the  linen  cloths. 

In  describing  the  cloths  above,  only  those  of 
American  manufacture  have  been  considered. 
There  are  English  cloths  which  correspond  to 
nearly  all  of  these  fabrics,  but  they  are  little  used 
in  America  on  account  of  the  delay  in  importing 
them  and  because  of  the  duty,  which  makes  the 
price  here  higher  than  for  corresponding  grades 
of  domestic  manufacture. 

One  cannot  stand  before  the  windows  of  the 
large  book  stores  at  holiday  time  without  being 
impressed  by  the  possibilities  offered  by  the  many 
colors  and  patterns  of  cloths  and  the  varied  hues 
of  inks  and  foil,  in  helping  the  artist  to  make  books 
attractive  to  the  eye,  and  suggestive  of  the  senti- 
232 


BOOK  CLOTHS 

ment  and  motive  of  their  contents.  One  feels 
that  the  designer  of  book  covers  has  surely  a 
wider  field  to-day  than  when  he  confined  his 
attention  entirely  to  making  intricate  designs  for 
single  leather-bound  folios. 


233 


BOOK  LEATHERS 
By  Ellery  C.  Bartlett 

There  is  hardly  any  part  of  the  world  that  has 
not  been  drawn  upon  for  suitable  skins  to  be  made 
into  leather  for  bookbinding.  The  skins  gener- 
ally used  are  goat,  seal,  pigskin,  cowhide,  calf,  and 
sheep,  and  they  vary  in  quahty  according  to  the 
country  they  come  from  and  the  manner  in  which 
the  animals  are  cared  for,  the  stall-fed  animals,  or 
those  that  are  protected  from  storm  and  have 
regular  food,  producing  the  best  skins. 

In  preparing  these  skins  for  bookbinders,  great 
care  has  to  be  taken  to  extract  as  much  of  the 
natural  oil  as  possible,  as  this  is  apt  to  discolor 
the  gold  leaf  decorations  put  on  by  the  artistic 
binder. 

Tanners  usually  buy  skins  with  the  hair  on. 
They  are  first  put  into  water,  for  the  purpose  of 
softening  them,  after  which  they  are  laid  over  a 
beam  and  a  knife  is  drawn  over  them,  to  still 
further  soften  them.  They  are  then  put  into  vats 
containing  slack  lime-water,  which  loosens  the  hair 
and  kills  the  animal  hfe  remaining  in  the  skin. 
After  having  been  in  these  vats  for  a  period  of 
234 


BOOK  LEATHERS 

about  ten  days,  they  are  washed  in  water,  to  re- 
move the  lime  and  clean  the  skin.  Afterwards 
they  are  put  through  a  process  called  "bating," 
which  destroys  any  animal  matter  in  the  skins 
which  may  have  escaped  the  first  process,  and  they 
are  then  finally  cleansed  by  a  solution  of  bran 
and  water,  which  also  prepares  them  for  tanning. 

After  the  skins  have  been  in  tan  for  a  week  or 
more,  they  are  taken  out,  tacked  on  drjdng  frames 
and  all  the  wrinkles  stretched  out  of  them.  When 
thoroughly  dry,  they  are  ready  for  the  coloring 
process.  After  being  colored,  they  are  again 
tacked  on  the  frames;  and  when  they  are  thor- 
oughly dry  again  they  are  taken  to  the  graining 
room,  where  the  finishing  processes  are  done  by 
skilled  workmen,  the  utmost  care  being  needed  to 
produce  the  desired  result. 

The  matching  of  shades  is  a  very  difficult  pro- 
cess, as  the  question  of  color  must  be  decided 
while  the  skins  are  still  wet.  Weather  conditions 
have  a  very  important  bearing  on  the  manufac- 
ture of  leather,  and  changes  in  the  atmosphere 
often  spoil  all  the  careful  work  that  has  previously 
been  put  on  a  skin. 

The  finest  leather  for  books  comes  from  France, 
although  a  good  quality  is  made  in  P^ngland  and 
Germany,  and  the  United  States  is  rapidly  im- 
proving its  output. 

The  graining  of  the  leather  to  l)ring  out  the 
natural  grain  in  the  skin,  is  done  by  hand  and 
235 


THE  BUILDING  OF  A  BOOK 

sometimes  by  electroplate  reproductions  of  the 
natural  grain  by  means  of  the  embossing  press. 
\ATien  largo  grain  is  wanted,  the  skins  are  shaved 
only  slightly  on  the  back;  if  small  grains  are 
wanted,  the  skins  are  shaved  thinner.  This  pro- 
cess removes  all  roughness  from  the  back  of  the 
skin,  leaving  it  smooth  and  clean. 

Formerly  the  binder,  in  preparing  his  covers, 
was  compelled  to  pare  the  edges  with  a  knife,  which 
was  a  slow  and  laborious  process ;  but  now  — 
thanks  to  the  inventive  American  talent  —  he  can 
have  the  whole  skin  spht  to  any  desired  thickness 
or  thinness,  without  injury;  or,  he  can  have  the 
edges  pared  by  cleverly  devised  machinery. 

Leather  manufacturers  are  able,  by  using  split- 
ting machines,  to  split  skins  so  that  both  parts  of 
a  skin  can  be  used  —  the  upper  part  of  the  skin 
being  called  the  grain  and  the  lower  the  flesh. 
Were  this  not  the  case,  it  would  be  impossible  for 
the  binder  to  supply  the  needs  of  his  customers, 
as  the  output  does  not  keep  pace  with  the  con- 
stantly increasing  demand.  In  fact,  binders  are 
constantly  looking  for  substitutes,  but,  after  all, 
there  is  nothing  so  good  as  leather. 


236 


THE   BINDING 

By  Jesse  Fellowes  Taplet 

The  changes  in  the  methods  of  bookbinding 
during  the  last  sixty  years  have  been  very  great, 
and  during  the  last  twenty-five  years  the  invention 
of  machines  for  doing  the  work  rapidly  has  created 
almost  a  revolution  in  the  art. 

Fifty  years  ago  the  pay  of  journeymen  book- 
binders ranged  from  eight  to  ten  dollars  a  week, 
for  a  day  of  ten  hours,  and  the  cost  of  binding  an 
ordinary  12mo  volume  of  500  pages  in  cloth  was 
from  sixteen  to  eighteen  cents.  To-day  the  same 
volume  can  be  bound  for  eight  to  ten  cents,  with 
the  pay  of  the  journeyman  from  eighteen  to  twenty 
dollars  a  week,  for  a  day  of  nine  hours.  The  pay 
of  girls  has,  as  a  general  thing,  been  proportionally 
increased,  while  the  amount  of  work  they  can  turn 
out  with  the  newly  invented  machinery  is  triple  as 
much  as  could  be  done  by  hand,  and  on  some 
branches  of  the  work  it  is  more  than  six  times 
as  much. 

The  first  process  of  making  a  book  is  the  folding. 
The  sheets  are  usually  printed  so  as  to  fold  in  sec- 
tions of  sixteen  pages,  with  signature.'  figures,  as 
237 


THE  BUILDING  OF  A  BOOK 

1,  2,  3,  or  alphabet  letters,  as  A,  B,  C,  printed  at 
the  bottom  of  the  first  page  of  each  section,  for 
the  guidance  of  the  binder  in  placing  the  signatures 
in  regular  order  for  gathering  the  book. 

Usually  two  or  four  forms  are  printed  on  one 
sheet.  One  girl  could  fold  by  hand  from  3500  to 
4000  sections  of  16  pages  a  day.  With  modern 
machines  the  range  is  from  17,000  to  48,000, 
according  to  the  make  of  the  machine  and  whether 
it  is  equipped  with  an  automatic  feeder  or  not. 

There  are  three  styles  of  machines  in  general 
use.  The  point  macliine,  fed  by  hand,  has  needle 
points  on  the  feed  board,  on  which  is  placed  the 
sheet,  which  has  proper  holes  made  by  the  printing 
press.  The  next  is  called  a  drop-roll  machine, 
which,  if  equipped  with  an  automatic  feeder,  will 
fold  24,000  sections  a  day,  delivering  two  sections 
at  each  revolution.  The  next  is  called  a  quadruple 
machine,  which,  with  an  automatic  feeder,  will 
fold  48,000  sections  a  day  or  as  many  as  twelve 
girls  could  do  by  hand. 

In  binderies  where  large  editions  of  books  are 
done,  it  would  be  almost  impossible  to  keep  the 
different  sections  from  getting  mixed,  unless  they 
were  put  into  compact  bundles  and  tied  up  until 
the  complete  book  is  folded.  This  is  accom- 
plished by  putting  a  quantity  of  each  section  into 
hydraulic  or  screw  presses,  with  a  board  at  the 
top  and  bottom  of  the  bundle,  which  is  tied  with 
a  strong  cord.  They  are  then  marked  with  name 
238 


THE  BINDING 

and  signature,  and  piled  up  until  wanted  for 
gathering  into  books. 

If  the  book  has  plates  printed  separately  from 
the  text,  they  have  to  be  inserted  before  it  can  be 
gathered.  Plating  is  done  by  girls,  5000  being  a 
day's  work  for  an  experienced  hand. 

Gathering  comes  next.  The  sections  are  laid 
out  in  separate  piles  in  consecutive  order,  and  one 
signature  taken  from  each  pile,  making  a  complete 
book.  From  30,000  to  45,000  sections  is  a  day's 
work. 

After  gathering,  the  book  is  pressed  to  make  it 
soUd.  This  is  done  by  passing  it  through  a  power- 
ful press,  called  a  smashing  machine.  The  old- 
fashioned  way  was  to  pile  the  books  between  boards 
in  a  standing  press,  running  the  screw  down  with 
an  iron  lever,  and  allowing  them  to  stay  in  same 
for  several  hours.  In  a  modern  smashing  machine 
a  book  can  be  made  as  soHd  in  half  a  minute 
as  the  standing  press  will  make  it  by  ten  hours' 
pressing. 

From  the  smasliing  machine  it  goes  to  the 
collator,  by  whom  it  is  cxahiincd  to  see  if  any  sig- 
nature is  misplaced  or  left  out. 

It  then  goes  to  the  modern  sewing  machine. 
This  is  one  of  the  most  vukiai)le  labor-saving  ma- 
chines for  the  binder  ever  invented,  as  it  almost, 
if  not  entirely,  supersedes  hand  sewing  on  what  is 
callf'd  edition  work.  This  machine  will  sew  from 
15,000  to  18,000  signatures  a  day,  and  do  it  better 
239 


THE  BUILDING  OF  A   BOOK 

than  it  can  be  done  by  hand.  Each  signature 
is  sewed  independently  and  with  from  two  to  five 
stitches,  so  that  if  one  breaks  the  signature  is 
held  fast  by  the  others,  while  in  hand  sewing  the 
thread  goes  through  the  whole  length  of  the  sig- 
nature, and  if  by  chance  it  is  broken,  the  book  is 
ruined  so  far  as  the  sewing  is  concerned.  In  addi- 
tion the  machine  does  more  work,  in  the  same 
time,  than  five  or  six  girls  sewing  by  hand. 

After  sewing,  the  books  are  prepared  for  trim- 
ming by  "jogging  up"  in  bunches  of  the  proper 
thickness,  for  the  cutting  machine.  If  the  work 
is  large  or  the  paper  highly  sized  and  sHppery,  a 
hght  coating  of  glue  is  appHed  to  the  centre  of  the 
back,  to  keep  the  signatures  in  place.  In  olden 
times  books  were  trimmed  in  a  press  having  hard- 
wood jaws  and  wood  screws  near  each  end,  worked 
with  an  iron  lever.  Into  this  press  the  books 
were  clamped,  the  rough  edge  to  be  trimmed  off 
projecting  above  the  jaws.  To  trim  the  book,  a 
plough  was  used,  made  of  two  thick  side  pieces 
of  hard  wood  about  one  foot  long  and  six  inches 
high,  with  a  long  hand  screw  passing  through 
them.  (The  end  at  the  right  had  a  handle  outside 
of  the  side  piece,  and  the  end  at  the  left  engaged  a 
screw  in  the  left  side  piece.)  At  the  bottom  of  the 
right  side  piece,  and  resting  on  the  jaw  of  the 
press,  was  a  sharp-pointed  knife.  The  plough  was 
worked  back  and  forth,  and  at  each  motion  the 
screw  in  the  plough  was  turned  enough  for  the 
240 


THE  BINDING 

knife  to  take  a  shaving  from  the  book.  To  keep 
the  plough  in  place,  the  left-hand  jaw  had  a  deep 
groove  on  its  surface,  in  which  the  plough  worked. 
This  was  slow  and  hard  work. 

Sometime  between  the  years  1840  and  1850,  a 
machine  was  invented  in  which  books  were  clamped, 
and  a  heavy  knife  descended  perpendicularly. 
This  was  an  improvement  on  the  old-fashioned 
press  and  plough,  but  it  was  found  that,  unless  the 
knife  was  very  sharp,  the  tendency  was  to  draw 
the  paper,  and  in  effect  jam  it  off  rather  than  cut  it. 

To  obviate  this,  the  next  move  was  to  arrange 
the  knife  so  that  it  would  give  a  drawing  cut,  or 
come  down  on  a  slant,  rather  than  a  rigid  descent. 
This  is  the  principle  on  which  most  book  and 
paper  cutting  machines  are  made  to-day. 

About  1850  a  machine  was  invented  in  which  a 
vibrating  knife  worked  back  and  forth  on  the 
paper  to  be  cut.  This  was  thought  at  the  time 
to  be  the  best  principle  for  a  cutting  machine. 

Ten  or  twenty  yeais  later  a  new  machine  made 
its  appearance.  This  one  had  a  knife  held  rigitlly 
in  the  frame  of  the  machine,  and  the  books  were 
clamped  into  a  carriage  drawn  uj)  by  a  chain  against 
the  edge  of  the  knife.  It  was  the  most  rapid 
trimmer  that  had  appeared,  and  held  its  position 
for  a  good  many  years;  but  in  the  meantime,  for 
general  work,  the  machines  with  a  descending 
slanting  knife  held  their  own  and  niultiplifnl. 

Within  a  very  short  time  a  new  machine  has 
241 


THE  BUILDING  OF  A  BOOK 

appeared.  This  has  two  slanting  descending  knives 
and  doubles  the  work  of  the  older  machines,  as  it 
cuts  two  sides  at  one  blow,  and  will  trim  from 
7000  to  8000  ordinary  books  a  day,  against  500 
or  600  by  the  old-fashioned  press  and  plough. 

After  the  edges  are  trimmed,  the  book  is  rounded 
and  backed.  In  this  process,  too,  great  improve- 
ment has  been  made.  Originally  this  work  was 
done  by  hand  with  a  hammer,  the  rounding  being 
accomplished  by  striking  one  side  of  the  back 
as  the  book  lay  flat,  and  then  the  other,  forming 
it  at  the  same  time  by  the  hand,  to  give  the  back 
the  convex,  and  the  front  the  concave,  form.  Some 
persons  are  found  now  who  think  the  hollow  or 
concave  front  of  the  book  is  made  by  trimming  it 
in  that  way. 

The  backing  process  gives  the  groove  on  which 
the  cover  is  hinged.  In  olden  times  this  was  done 
by  clamping  the  book  in  a  press  between  backing 
irons,  with  the  back  projecting  enough  to  give  the 
proper  groove,  and  gradually  drawing  it  over 
from  the  centre  with  the  hammer.  In  small  job 
shops  this  is  the  practice  to-day,  but  in  large 
establishments  it  has  given  place  to  modern 
machines.  The  first  innovation  was  what  is  called 
the  roller  backer.  This  makes  the  groove,  the  book 
being  first  rounded  as  described.  Then  came  the 
rounder  and  backer,  which  is  run  by  power,  and 
both  rounds  and  backs  the  book  at  one  operation. 

To  show  the  advance  made,  it  may  be  stated 
242 


THE  BINDING 

that  500  books  was  a  good  day's  work  with  press 
and  hammer.  With  the  advent  of  the  roller 
backer  1000  was  a  fair  day's  work,  but  when  the 
power  machine  was  invented,  the  production 
jumped  up  to  4000  and  over,  a  day. 

After  the  book  is  rounded  and  grooved,  the  back 
is  glued  and  a  piece  of  coarse  woven  cloth,  wide 
enough  to  lap  over  each  side  an  inch  or  more,  is 
put  on,  and  over  this  another  coat  of  glue  and  a 
piece  of  paper  the  width  of  the  back  are  applied. 

The  book  is  then  ready  for  the  cover,  which  is 
put  on  by  pasting  the  first  and  last  leaf,  drawing 
the  cover  on,  and  putting  it  in  press  between 
boards  whose  edges  are  bound  with  a  brass  band, 
the  rim  projecting  above  the  surface  of  the  board. 
This  rim  presses  the  cloth  between  the  covers  and 
the  back  of  the  book,  making  a  hinge  upon  which 
the  cover  opens.  Two  men  can  paste  and  press 
1500  to  2000  books  a  day.  A  new  machine  has 
been  put  on  the  market  within  a  year,  that,  with 
the  same  help,  will  do  the  work  at  the  rate  of 
4000  a  day.     This  process  is  termed  "casing  in." 

The  making  f)f  the  book  cover  is  a  dislinct  branch 
in  binding  edition  work.  The  pasteboard  formerly 
was  cut  by  hand  shears,  one  piece  at  a  time.  It 
is  now  done  by  rotary  shears,  cutting  from  six  to 
ten  pieces  as  fast  as  the  sheets  of  board  can  be  fed 
to  the  machine. 

The  clotli  for  the  rovor  is  cut  to  tlie  proper  size, 
glued  by  hand,  the  boards  laid  on  by  gauge,  and 
24.3 


THE   BUILDING  OF  A   BOOK 

the  edges  turned  in  with  a  folder.  A  man  expert 
at  the  work  can  make  from  600  to  800  covers  a 
day.  About  fifteen  years  ago  a  machine  was  in- 
vented, which  turns  out  from  3000  to  4500  a  day. 
This  machine  is  automatic  in  its  operation,  gluing 
the  cloth,  laying  on  the  boards,  turning  in  the 
edges,  and  delivering  a  more  perfect  cover  than 
can  be  made  by  hand. 

Stamping  the  cover  is  a  trade  by  itself.  It  re- 
quires long  experience  and  skill  to  make  an  expert. 
There  are  several  branches  in  this  trade,  such  as 
blank  or  bhnd  stamping,  stamping  with  ink  (or 
a  colored  leaf  made  to  take  the  place  of  ink),  and 
stamping  with  gold.  Laying  gold  preparatory 
to  stamping  is  a  distinct  branch,  and  is  done  by 
girls.  This  is  such  a  delicate  operation  that  it 
requires  long  experience.  There  has  been  no  im- 
provement in  the  principle  of  the  stamping  or 
embossing  press  since  the  first  machines  came 
into  use.  The  die  or  stamp  is  held  in  the  head  of 
the  press  by  clamps,  and  the  cover  is  placed  on 
the  platen  or  bed  of  the  press,  which  is  raised  up 
to  the  stamp  by  a  "toggle  joint"  operated  with  a 
"cam." 

Since  covers  began  to  be  ornamented  with  ink, 
attachments  have  been  added  to  the  presses  for  ink- 
ing the  stamps.  There  have  also  been  invented 
powerful  printing  presses,  made  for  stamping  covers 
in  ink.  The  process  is  the  same  as  on  common 
printing  presses. 

244 


THE  BINDING 

The  dies  used  for  stamping  covers  are  cut  on 
hardened  brass,  and  are  capable  of  standing  an 
immense  pressure.  They  are  not  set  in  chases,  as 
are  the  forms  on  printing  presses,  but  are  gkied  to 
iron  plates.  The  head  of  the  press  to  which  the 
plates  are  clamped  is  heated,  either  by  running  a 
jet  of  Hve  steam  through  it,  or  by  gas  jets. 

For  gilt  work,  or  colored  leaf,  heat  is  necessary. 
The  cover  is  prepared  with  a  coat  of  size.  The 
gold  or  ink  leaf  is  then  laid  on  and  an  impression 
is  given  with  the  heated  die,  which  melts  the  size 
and  fastens  the  leaf  only  at  the  point  where  the 
die  strikes.  The  surplus  leaf  is  brushed  off,  leav- 
ing only  the  design  visible. 

The  binding  of  cheap  leather-covered  books  is 
essentially  the  same  as  with  cloth.  The  difference 
is  that  the  covers  must  be  made  by  hand.  No 
machine  will  do  any  part,  except  paring  the  edges 
of  the  covers.  There  are  several  machines  that 
will  do  this  work,  one  machine  doing  as  much  in 
a  day  as  three  men  could  with  knifp  and  paring 
stone  in   the  old  way. 

Edge-gilding  is  another  distinct  branch  of  the 
trade,  and  is  generally  done  before  books  are 
rounded  and  backed.  The  books  are  clamped, 
after  trimming,  between  the  jaws  of  powerful 
screw  presses  and  the  edges  scraped  to  make 
them  perfectly  smooth.  They  are  then  colored 
with  a  mixture  of  red  chalk,  or  black  lead,  applied 
with  a  sponge,  to  give  the  gold  a  dark  color.  A 
245 


THE  BUILDING  OF  A  BOOK 

size  made  of  the  white  of  eggs  is  then  applied  with 
a  brush,  the  gold  leaf  floated  on,  and  when  dry 
burnished  with  an  agate  or  bloodstone.  No  ma- 
chine has  yet  been  invented  that  will  do  this  work. 

Edge-marbling  is  another  branch.  A  shallow 
trough  is  filled  with  a  solution  of  gum  hog  or  gum 
tragacanth  of  the  consistency  of  thick  cream. 
Each  color,  which  must  be  ground  very  fine,  is 
mixed  in  water  and  ox-gall,  and  sprinkled  sepa- 
rately over  the  surface  of  the  gum  with  brushes. 
The  ox-gall  prevents  the  colors  from  mixing 
together  on  the  solution,  every  drop  being  dis- 
tinct. If  three  or  more  colors  are  used,  the  first 
one  containing  a  little  gall,  the  second  more  than 
the  first,  and  the  third  more  than  the  second,  each 
color  will  make  a  place  for  itself  by  crowding  the 
others  into  a  narrower  space.  The  books  are  held 
firmly  in  a  clamp,  and  as  the  edges  are  dipped  into 
the  solution  they  take  up  the  colors  as  they  he 
on  the  surface. 

Tliere  are  other  edges  called  for  besides  the  gilt, 
the  marbled,  or  the  plain  smooth  cut.  The  deckle 
edge  is  left  uncut,  just  as  it  comes  from  the  paper- 
maker.  The  uncut  or  rough  cut  is  made  by  taking 
off  any  projecting  edges  of  the  leaves.  There  are 
machines  for  doing  this,  one  having  a  circular  knife 
rigged  Hke  a  circular  saw,  the  book  being  run 
lengthwise  against  it.  There  are  also  other 
methods  of  removing  overhanging  leaves,  one  by 
using  hand  shears,  another  by  fiUng. 
246 


THE  BINDING 

In  fine  leather  binding,  while  the  preparation  of 
the  book  for  the  cover  is  essentially  the  same  as 
in  cloth  work,  the  covering  is  all  hand-work,  re- 
quiring experience  and  skill,  and  is  a  distinct  branch 
of  the  trade. 

Finishing  by  hand  is  another,  and  requires  long 
experience  to  become  an  expert.  Gold  ornamenta- 
tion requires  heated  tools,  and  in  the  hands  of  a 
practised  finisher  beautiful  designs  can  be  worked 
out  with  quite  a  limited  assortment  of  rolls,  straight 
and  curved  Unes,  and  a  few  sprigs,  dots,  and  stars. 

In  olden  times,  when  all  work  was  done  by  hand, 
the  product  of  a  good-sized  cloth  bindery  was 
from  500  to  1000  books  a  day.  Now,  with  modern 
machinery,  in  a  well-equipped  bindery,  the  prod- 
uct is  from  5000  to  10,000  copies  of  an  ordinary 
12mo  book. 

There  are  a  number  of  other  machines  in  use, 
run  by  power,  which  have  not  been  enumerated 
in  the  above  sketch,  such  as  wire  and  thread  stitch- 
ing machines,  gluing  and  pasting  machines, 
brushing  machines,  and  last  but  not  least  a  gold- 
saving  machine,  out  of  whose  bowels  largo  hinders 
take  from  S200  to  S400  worth  of  waste  gold  each 
month.  This  waste  gold  comes  from  the  surplus 
gold  brushed  from  the  covers  after  stamping. 


247 


SPECIAL   BINDINGS 
By  Henry  Blackwell 

Much  has  been  written  about  the  art  of  special 
binding,  and  many  lengthy  treatises  have  been 
written  on  the  various  methods  of  early  and  modern 
"extra,"  or  fine  binders.  It  will  be  my  province 
to  describe  the  stages  through  which  a  book  passes, 
from  the  time  it  is  received  in  the  bindery  until 
it  is  shipped  out  of  the  establishment.  I  will  take 
for  my  subject  a  rare  old  book  that  is  to  be  rebound 
in  a  half-levant  morocco  binding.  In  a  good  shop, 
all  books,  no  matter  what  the  binding  is  to  be,  are 
treated  alike  in  regard  to  workmanship,  care,  and 
materials.  If  a  binder  puts  his  name  in  the  com- 
pleted book,  it  is  a  sign  that  the  book  has  been  to 
the  best  of  his  ability  honestly  and  well  bound. 

When  the  customer  brings  the  book  to  the  binder, 
the  style  of  binding,  color  of  the  leather,  amount 
and  kind  of  ornamentation,  and  all  the  other 
details  are  determined  upon  and  entered  carefully 
in  a  numbered  order  book,  and  the  number  of  the 
order  is  marked  in  pencil  on  an  inside  leaf  of  the 
book  itself,  so  that  the  original  instructions  may 
be  referred  to  from  time  to  time.  This  number 
248 


SPECIAL  BINDINGS 

is  usually  left  in  the  book  after  it  has  been  finished 
and  delivered  to  the  owner,  and  not  infrequently 
has  been  the  means  of  identifying  a  lost  or  stolen 
voliune. 

The  book  is  then  given  to  the  first  operator, 
usually  a  girl,  who  removes  the  cover,  if  there  is 
any,  and  takes  the  book  apart,  separating  care- 
fully each  of  the  "signatures,"  or  sections,  and 
removing  the  threads  of  the  old  binding.  If  any 
of  the  pages  are  loose,  they  are  pasted  neatly 
in  their  proper  places  and  the  "insert  plates" 
(illustrations,  maps,  etc.),  which  had  been  printed 
separately  from  the  text  and  pasted  in  the  volume, 
are  examined  to  make  sure  that  they  are  firmly 
fixed.  Another  operator  goes  over  the  entire 
volume  and  cleans  any  of  the  pages  that  have 
become  soiled. 

The  book  is  then  prepared  for  the  sewing  by  a 
man  who  hammers  the  back  until  it  is  flat  and  all 
the  edges  of  the  signatures  lie  evenly.  He  then 
divides  it  into  sections  of  half  a  dozen  or  more 
signatures,  places  each  of  these  between  smooth 
wooden  boards,  and  puts  the  whole  into  an  upright 
iron  press,  in  which  it  is  subjected  to  a  great 
pressure,  and  where  it  ought  to  remain  over  night 
in  order  to  make  it  entirely  flat  and  solid.  A  better 
way  of  pressing  a  book  at  this  stage  of  the  opera- 
tion is  to  pass  it  several  limes  through  a  rolling 
machine,  which  is  made  for  this  special  purpose 
with  two  heavy  iron  rollers,  say  twenty  inches 
249 


THE   BUILDING  OF  A  BOOK 

long  and  ten  inches  in  diameter.  These  machines 
are  seldom  used  in  America,  but  are  invariably 
found  in  the  equipment  of  binders'  workshops 
abroad,  which  is  perhaps  one  reason  why  English 
books  are  so  solidly  bound. 

Following  the  pressing,  or  the  rolling,  the  book  is 
placed,  back  uppermost,  in  another  press,  something 
Uke  a  wooden  vise.  By  means  of  a  handsaw,  several 
cuts,  just  deep  enough  to  cut  entirely  through 
the  fold  of  each  signature,  are  made  across  the  back 
of  the  book.  Seven  of  these  saw  marks  are  usually 
made,  the  five  in  the  middle  being  for  the  cords 
on  which  the  book  is  sewed,  and  the  two  at  the 
ends  for  threads  which  help  to  make  the  sewing 
more  secure.  If  the  book  is  to  have  a  binding 
with  raised  bands  across  the  back,  no  actual  cuts 
are  made,  the  back  being  simply  scratched  to  guide 
the  girl  in  sewing,  so  that  the  heavy  twine  on  which 
she  sews  will  stand  out  on  the  back,  forcing  the 
leather  up  in  the  five  middle  places  and  forming 
the  raised  bands. 

After  it  has  been  sawed,  or  scratched,  the  book 
goes  to  a  girl  who  collates  it  —  that  is,  examines 
it  thoroughly,  signature  by  signature,  and  makes 
sure  that  everything  is  in  its  right  place.  If 
the  volume  is  old  or  especially  valuable,  it  is  gone 
over  page  by  page.  The  first  and  last  signatures 
are  then  whip-stitched,  or  sewed  over  and  over 
along  the  back  edges,  and  then  put  in  their  places. 

The  book  is  then  sewn  on  a  "sewing  frame." 
250 


SPECIAL  BINDINGS 

This  is  a  small  wooden  table  about  twelve  by 
eighteen  inches,  with  legs  only  one  inch  high.  At 
two  corners  there  are  upright  wooden  screws, 
some  fifteen  inches  long  with  movable  collars 
which  support  a  crosspiece.  To  this  crosspiece 
are  fastened  three  stout  cords,  their  other  ends 
being  attached  to  the  table.  Tlie  position  of  these 
cords  are  regulated  to  fit  the  saw  marks  on  the 
back  of  the  book,  then  they  are  tightened  by 
means  of  the  screw  collars.  The  sections  of  the 
book  are  then  placed  against  these  cords,  one  by 
one,  and  the  threads  passed  through  the  saw  cuts 
and  outside  the  cords,  thus  sewing  them  firmly 
to  the  back  of  the  book.  When  several  books  of 
the  same  size  are  being  bound  at  one  time,  the 
operator  goes  right  on  sewing  book  after  book, 
one  signature  after  the  other,  until  she  has  finished 
a  pile  of  books  a  foot  or  more  high.  When  the 
sewing  is  finished  the  cords  are  cut  so  as  to  leave 
a  free  end  of  an  inch  and  a  half  on  each  side  of  the 
book,  and  to  these  ends  are  fastened  the  boards, 
as  described  later. 

Linen  or  silk  thread  is  used  in  sewing,  the  heavi- 
ness of  which  depends  upon  the  size  of  the  book 
and  the  thickness  of  the  paper  of  the  book.  If 
the  book  has  many  single  leaves,  or  illustrations,  it 
is  sometimes  necessary  to  whip-stitch  each  signa- 
ture before  sewing. 

The  book,  or  the  pile  of  books,  then  passes  to  the 
"forwarder,"  who  "draws  off"  or  separates  each 
251 


THE   BUILDING   OF  A   BOOK 

book  from  the  others  in  the  pile,  and  again  ham- 
mers the  book,  to  flatten  out  any  "swell"  which 
may  be  present  after  the  sewing.  He  then  pastes, 
or  "tacks,"  the  first  and  last  whip-stitched  sig- 
natures to  the  signatures  next  them,  this  past- 
ing being  only,  say,  an  eighth  of  an  inch  wide 
along  the  back  edge. 

The  paper  is  then  chosen  for  the  "end  papers," 
usually  matching  closely  the  paper  of  the  book. 
They  are  cut  a  little  larger  than  the  paper  page 
of  the  book,  and  pasted  along  the  edge  to  the  outside 
and  whip-stitched  signatures.  Marble  paper  in 
suitable  harmony  or  contrast  with  the  leather  to  be 
used  on  the  book  is  then  selected  for  lining  the 
inside  of  the  covers  cut  to  the  same  size  as  the 
"end  papers,"  and  pasted  to  them,  after  having 
been  folded  so  that  the  colored  sides  come  face 
to  face. 

When  all  this  pasting  has  dried  thoroughly, 
the  back  of  the  book  is  covered  with  a  thin  coating 
of  glue,  to  preserve  its  shape  and  then,  while  the 
back  is  quite  flat,  the  front  edges  of  the  leaves  are 
trimmed  off  evenly  in  a  cutting  machine.  If 
this  edge  is  to  be  gilded,  special  care  is  taken  to 
have  the  edges  cut  smoothly. 

The  back  is  then  "  rounded  "  by  use  of  a  hammer ; 
if  the  book  is  to  be  a  "flat  back"  one,  the  round- 
ing is  very  shght.  It  is  necessary  even  in  the  case 
of  a  flat  back  book  to  round  it  somewhat  so  that 
it  will  retain  its  shape  when  the  finished  book  is 
252 


SPECIAL   BINDINGS 

placed  on  the  shelf.  After  the  rounding,  the  top, 
or  "head,"  and  the  bottom,  or  "tail,"  of  the  book 
are  trimmed  evenly  in  the  cutting  machine. 

The  book  is  then  ready  for  the  gilder,  who  places 
it,  with  the  edge  which  is  to  be  gilded  uppermost, 
in  a  press.  This  edge  is  covered  with  red  chalk, 
which  shows  all  the  uneven  places,  which  are 
then  scraped  with  a  steel  scraper.  Tliis  operation 
is  repeated  until  the  edge  is  very  smooth,  and  it 
is  then  treated  with  a  sizing  made  of  white  of  egg 
and  water,  which  is  to  hold  the  gold  leaf  to  the 
edges  of  the  leaves.  The  gold  leaf  is  laid  on  the 
still  wet  edge,  and  when  slightly  dry  is  covered 
with  a  sheet  of  paper  and  rubbed  down  with  a 
burnisher,  and  when  entirely  dry  is  burnished  again 
with  a  smooth  piece  of  agate  or  bloodstone. 

The  boards,  pieces  of  strong  and  durable  binders' 
"boards"  made  of  paper  or  tarred  rope,  are 
then  selected  and  cut  to  fit  the  book,  extending 
about  one-eighth  of  an  inch  over  the  head,  tail, 
and  front  edges  of  the  leaves.  Each  of  the  cords, 
on  which  the  book  has  been  sewed,  is  moistened 
with  j)aslo,  and  put  through  two  holes  wliicli  are 
punched  side  by  side  in  the  board  and  within  a 
quarter  of  an  inch  of  the  inside  edge.  The  cord 
is  carried  down  flnough  one  liolo,  and  u{)  tlnongh 
the  otlier,  and  tlie  leniaining  end  is  cut  off  and 
hammered  down  smooth  where  it  stays  firmly 
fastened  by  the  paste.  This  is  called  "lacing  on 
the  boards"  and  when  finished  makes,  so  far  as 
253 


THE  BUILDING  OF  A  BOOK 

strength  is  concerned,  the  cover-boards  and  the  in- 
side of  the  book  practically  one  piece.  The  book 
is  then  given  another  long  pressing. 

The  coverer  then  takes  the  volume.  He  first 
wraps  the  edges  with  paper  to  keep  them  clean 
and  then  puts  on  the  headbands.  These  are  either 
sewn  directly  on  to  the  book  or  may  be  bought 
ready-made,  when  they  are  put  on  with  glue. 

The  back  is  covered  with  a  strip  of  coarsely 
woven  crash  lined  with  several  pieces  of  paper. 
This  is  glued  to  the  back  to  make  it  hard  and 
solid  and  to  prevent  it  from  cracking,  or  "break- 
ing," when  the  book  is  opened. 

The  leather  is  then  cut  out  for  the  corners  and 
for  the  back,  in  the  latter  case  allowance  being 
made  for  its  extension  over  and  on  to  the  boards 
to  the  proper  distance.  The  back  lining  is 
trimmed  off  to  the  top  of  the  headbands,  and  the 
leather  is  pasted  on  the  rough  side  in  position  and 
turned  in  at  the  "head"  and  "tail"  of  the  back. 
The  five  raised  bands  are  then  "pinched  up" 
and  the  whole  back  is  polished,  or  "crushed," 
with  a  hot  polisher  until  the  leather  is  smoothed 
down  to  the  desired  surface. 

In  decorating  the  cover,  or  "toohng"  it,  as  it 
is  called,  the  design  is  first  pressed  into  the  leather 
of  the  back  with  heated  tools.  These  designs, 
appearing  "blank,"  or  sunken,  in  the  leather, 
are  washed  over  with  a  thin  coat  of  paste  and 
water,  followed  by  a  sizing  of  albumen,  and  finally 
254 


SPECIAL  BINDINGS 

with  vaseline,  to  make  the  gold  stick.  Gold  leaf 
is  laid  over  the  "blank"  designs  and  the  same 
heated  tools  used  to  press  the  gold  into  the  leather. 
As  many  as  three  layers  of  gold  are  frequently 
put  on  in  this  way  until  the  design  is  full  and 
clear.  The  waste  edges  of  the  pieces  of  gold  leaf 
are  removed  with  a  piece  of  soft  rubber  and  the 
whole  back  washed  with  benzine  to  remove  the 
grease  of  the  vaseUne  and  that  of  the  natural 
leather. 

The  part  of  the  leather  which  projects  over  the 
sides  is  pasted  to  the  boards,  trmnned  off  straight, 
and  pared  down  until  the  edges  are  very  thin. 
Another  piece  of  plain  paper  is  then  cut  out  and 
pasted  on  the  board,  covering  it  right  up  to  the 
edges  of  the  leather.  This  makes  the  side  board 
and  the  leather  even  in  height  and  prevents  the 
outside  marbled  paper  from  showing  ridges  made  by 
the  edges  of  the  leather. 

When  the  outside  has  dried,  a  piece  of  paper 
is  pasted  on  the  inside  of  each  board.  This  paper 
has  a  tendency  to  shrink  a  little  and  to  warp  the 
boards,  so  that  they  will  hold  tightly  to  the  inside 
of  the  book.  If  this  paper  were  not  put  on  the 
inside  of  the  covers,  the  marbled  paper  on  the  out- 
side might  cause  the  boards  to  warp  away  from 
the  book  itself. 

The  end  papers  are  then  pasted  down  on  to  the 
board,  and  when  thoroughly  dry  all  the  leather 
along  the  inside  and  tiic  outside  edges  of  the  cover 
2o5 


THE   BUILDING   OF  A   BOOK 

sides  is  carefully  washed  and  polished  with  an 
iron  polisher.  The  book  is  then  placed  between 
plates  made  of  steel,  either  nickel  or  silver  plated, 
and  placed  in  the  press  to  remain  a  day  or  two, 
after  which  the  back  is  polished  again  and  the 
sides  are  finished  with  gilt  lines  along  the  edges 
of  the  leather  next  to  the  marbled  paper.  Then 
the  book  is  finally  inspected,  a  silk  marker  inserted, 
and  the  volume  is  done  and  ready  for  delivery. 


256 


COPYRIGHTING 
By  Frederick  H.  Hitchcock 

Copyrighting  a  book  is  in  most  instances  not 
a  difficult  matter,  but  the  present  United  States 
laws  are  so  complicated  and  inconsistent  that  an 
inexperienced  author  may  readily  fall  into  errors 
of  one  kind  or  another. 

In  a  modern  publishing  house,  the  routine  work 
of  complying  with  the  provisions  of  the  copyright 
laws  is  usually  in  the  hands  of  one  clerk,  who  is 
responsible  for  the  preparation  and  filing  of  the 
necessary  documents  at  the  proper  time  and  for 
keeping  a  complete  record  of  all  that  he  does. 
Experience  soon  brings  such  a  clerk  a  really  valu- 
able knowledge  of  the  law,  but  as  many  questions 
of  vital  importance  arise  from  time  to  time,  it  is 
customary  for  one  of  the  most  responsible  men  in 
the  concern,  generally  a  member  of  the  firm  or  an 
officer  in  the  corporation,  to  exorcise  a  general 
supervision  of  all  copyright  matters. 

When  a  book  is  ready  to  be  sent  to  the  bindery, 

the  manufaf'turing  department  will  generally  order 

a  certain  number  of  copies  to  l)e  finished  in  advance 

of  the  rest  of  the  edition.     Some  of  these  will  be 

257 


THE   BUILDING  OF  A   BOOK 

for  the  travelling  salesman's  use,  some  for  the  pub- 
licity department,  and  at  least  two  for  copyright 
purposes.  With  the  copies  delivered  to  the  copy- 
right clerk,  the  manufacturing  department  will  send 
one  or  two  separate  title-pages,  either  torn  from 
the  printed  sheets  or  taken  from  the  early  proofs 
made  by  the  printer.  With  these  in  hand  and 
with  information  from  the  selling  department  as  to 
the  day  when  the  book  is  to  be  published,  the  clerk 
in  charge  will  then  take  the  first  step  toward  copy- 
righting it.  This  is  the  fihng  of  the  claim  for  copy- 
right and  of  the  title  of  the  book. 

The  Copyright  Office  in  the  Library  of  Congress 
at  Washington  supplies  free  upon  request  appUca- 
tion  blanks,  and  one  of  these  must  be  carefully  filled 
in.  The  information  called  for  by  this  blank  is  as 
follows :  the  amount  of  the  fees  enclosed,  whether 
a  sealed  copy  of  the  record,  or  certificate  as  it  is 
called,  is  desired,  whether  the  volume  is  to  be 
classed  as  a  book,  periodical,  or  dramatic  composi- 
tion, an  abbreviated  title  of  the  book,  the  name  of 
the  author,  or  proprietor,  the  name  and  address  of 
the  applicant,  the  name  of  the  country  where  the 
book  was  printed,  whether  the  applicant  is  the 
author,  or  (having  an  assignment  from  the  author) 
the  proprietor,  the  name  of  the  country  of  which 
the  author  is  a  citizen,  or  subject,  and  whether  the 
whole  or  a  part  of  the  book  is  sought  to  be  copy- 
righted. 

There  is  a  blank  page  in  the  form  where  the  print 
258 


COPYRIGHTING 

or  proof  of  the  title-page  must  be  pasted.  If  neither 
of  these  is  available  at  the  time,  it  is  customary  to 
use  a  typewritten  title-page,  but  as  the  law  dis- 
tinctly calls  for  a  "printed"  title  and  as  the  courts 
have  not  decided  whether  typewriting  is  printing 
within  the  intention  of  the  law,  it  is  best  to  follow 
the  exact  letter  of  the  law. 

The  fee  for  filing  the  application  or  claim  for 
copyright  is  fifty  cents  if  the  author  is  a  citizen  or 
resident  of  the  United  States,  or  one  dollar  if  he  is 
a  foreigner.  If  a  copy  of  the  record  entered  at  the 
Copyright  Office  is  desired,  an  additional  fifty  cents 
is  required.  The  fees,  preferably  in  the  form  of  a 
money-order,  are  enclosed  in  the  envelope  contain- 
ing the  claim,  and  the  whole  forwarded,  postage  pre- 
paid, to  the  Register  of  Copyrights  at  the  Library 
of  Congress. 

Upon  receiving  these,  the  Copyright  Office  will 
acknowledge  the  receii)t  of  the  fees  and  make  a 
record  of  the  claim  and  of  the  title  in  books  pro- 
vided for  the  purpose.  The  law  specifies  that  this 
record  shall  be  in  the  following  words:  — 

"Library  of  Congress,  to  wit:  Be  it  remembered 

that  on  the.. .day  of ...190 _ 

of. lias  deposited  in  this  Office  the  title 

of  a  BO(JK,  the  title  of  which  is  in  the.  following 

words,  to  wit: .,  the  right  whereof 

claims  as  author  and  proprietor  in  conformity  with 
the  laws  of  the  United  States  resjiecting  copyrights. 

__ .Librarian  of  Congress." 

250 


THE  BUILDING  OF  A   BOOK 

It  is  generally  the  custom  to  obtain  a  copy  of 
this  record,  which,  if  the  fee  is  enclosed,  is  sent  to 
the  claimant  as  soon  after  the  receipt  of  the  appli- 
cation as  it  can  be  made  out  in  the  regular  course 
of  the  business  of  the  Copyright  Office.  This  copy 
is  signed  by  the  Register  of  Copyrights  and  is  sealed 
with  the  official  seal  of  the  Library  of  Congress. 
The  period  of  protection  under  an  original  claim  is 
twenty-eight  years. 

It  is  important  to  remember  that  the  application 
and  the  title  are  required  by  law  to  be  delivered  to 
the  Register  of  Copyrights  "on  or  before  the  day 
of  publication  in  this  or  any  other  country."  If 
delayed  until  after  that  day,  the  book  cannot  have 
the  protection  of  the  copyright  law. 

Prior  to  1891  none  but  citizens  or  residents  of 
the  United  States  could  obtain  copyright,  but  in 
July  of  that  year  the  privilege  was  extended  to  the 
citizens,  or  subjects,  of  such  other  countries  as 
grant  to  the  citizens  of  the  United  States  the  same 
copyright  privileges  which  they  afford  to  their  own 
countrymen.  At  the  present  time  these  privileged 
countries  are  Belgium,  France,  Great  Britain  and 
her  possessions,  Switzerland,  Germany,  Italy,  Den- 
mark, Portugal,  Spain,  Mexico,  Chile,  Costa  Rica, 
the  Netherlands  (Holland)  and  her  possessions, 
Cuba,  China,  and  Norway. 

The  law  also  requires  that  a  book  desired  to  be 
copyrighted  in  the  United  States  must  be  printed 
in  this  country.  It  is,  therefore,  not  possible  to 
260 


COP^TIIGHTING 

copyright  a  book  which  has  been  put  into  type 
and  electrotyped  in  England  and  sent  here  for  the 
presswork  and  binding.  Copies  of  a  book  manu- 
factured in  this  country  may,  however,  be  sent  to 
England  and  copyrighted  there. 

The  second  step  is  to  send  two  copies  of  the 
printed  book  for  deposit  in  the  Copyright  Office, 
and  until  this  has  been  done,  the  copyright  is  in- 
complete. These  copies,  hke  the  title,  must  be 
delivered  on  or  before  the  day  of  pubUcation. 

A  printed  receipt-form  for  books  to  be  deposited 
is  supplied  by  the  Copyright  Office,  and  it  is  the 
usual  practice  for  the  sender  to  fill  in  his  address, 
and  the  names  of  the  book  antl  of  the  author,  so 
that  when  the  books  are  received,  the  Register  of 
Copyrights  needs  only  to  date  and  sign  the  receipt- 
form  and  return  it  to  the  sender.  This  receipt- 
form  should  be  enclosed  with  the  })ooks  when  they 
are  forwarded.  The  package  nuist  be  plainly  ad- 
dressed (the  Copyright  Office  furnishes  printed 
labels  if  desired)  and  sent,  carriage  prepaid,  through 
the  mail. 

It  not  infrequently  happens  that  publication 
must  be  mad(^  l)efore  the  two  copies  of  a  Ixutk  can 
reach  Washington.  In  such  cases  the  copyright 
clerk  may  take  tiie  books  to  the  nearest  post-office 
and  obtain  from  the  postmaster  a  dated  receipt 
for  them  wliich  is  e(iuivalent  to  delivery  to  the 
Copyright  Office.  The  package  is  not  finally 
wrapf)e(l  until  the  postmaster  has  examined  il. 
261 


THE  BUILDING  OF  A  BOOK 

When  these  steps  have  been  properly  taken,  and 
the  certificate,  or  sealeci  copy,  of  the  record  and  the 
receipt  for  the  two  copies  have  been  received,  the 
copyright  is  secure  so  far  as  our  laws  can  render 
it.  It  should  be  borne  in  mind  that  the  Copyright 
Office  does  not  grant  a  copyright  in  a  manner 
similar  to  the  granting  of  a  patent  right  by  the 
patent  office.  Its  function  is  simply  to  record  in  a 
permanent  place  and  in  official  form  the  claim  made 
by  the  author,  or  by  the  proprietor,  of  that  right. 
When  a  book  is  "pirated"  and  the  offender  sued, 
it  must  first  be  established  by  the  records  that  the 
provisions  of  the  law  have  been  complied  with 
fully  and  correctly.  In  this  way  a  copyright  is 
always  subject  to  review  by  the  courts. 

Every  copy  of  a  book  for  which  copyright  has 
been  claimed  must  have  a  formal  notice  to  that 
effect,  printed  on  its  "title-page  or  on  the  page 
following."  As  prescribed  by  law,  this  notice  must 
read  either  "Entered  according  to  the  Act  of  Con- 
gress in  the  year  1906  by  A.  B.  in  the  Office  of  the 
Library  of  Congress,"  or  simply,  "Copyi'ight,  1906, 
by  A.  B."  The  omission  of  such  a  notice  from  the 
book  would  make  it  impossible  for  its  owner  to 
prevent  its  being  reprinted.  There  is  a  penalty  of 
$100  for  using  the  notice  of  copyright  in  an  uncopy- 
righted  book,  and  when  the  notice  is  used,  there  is 
a  penalty  of  $25,  if  the  two  copies  as  required  by 
law  are  not  deposited.  This  latter  penalty  also 
applies  in  the  case  of  failure  to  deposit  one  copy  of 
262 


COPYRIGHTING 

a  new  edition  differing  from  the  former  one,  if  a 
notice  of  copyright  is  used  in  the  new  edition. 

In  order  to  obtain  a  renewal  of  a  copyright,  the 
claim  and  the  title  must  be  filed  on  a  form  pro- 
vided for  the  purpose  with  the  Register  of  Copy- 
rights "within  six  months  before  the  expiration  of 
the  first  t€rm,"  which  would  be  sometime  between 
twenty-seven  and  one-half  and  twenty-eight  years 
from  the  date  of  filing  the  original  title.  The  copy- 
right period  runs  from  the  date  of  filing  the  original 
claim,  and  not  from  the  time  of  depositing  the 
books,  and  great  care  should  be  taken  to  ascertain 
the  date  of  the  registration  of  the  original  title, 
and  to  compute  the  time  so  that  the  fifing  of  the 
application  for  renewal  will  surely  fall  within  the 
specified  six  months.  The  renewal  period  is  fourteen 
years,  and  the  fees  are  the  same  as  in  the  case  of 
the  original  application,  but  a  certificate,  or  copy 
of  the  record,  of  the  renewal  claim  must  be  taken 
and  paid  for  by  the  claimant. 

Only  one  copy  of  a  book  is  required  to  be  de- 
posited to  complete  i\w  claim  for  a  renewal  term 
of  copyriglit.  This  copy  also  must  be  delivered 
within  "six  montlis  before  the  exj)iration  of  the 
first  term, "  and  should  l)e  accompanied  by  a  receipt 
as  in  the  cas(!  of  the  original  deposit.  In  order  to 
complete  the  claim,  a  coj^y  of  the  certificate  must 
be  published  verl^atim,  within  two  months  of  the 
date  of  renewal  for  four  weeks  in  one  or  more 
newspapers  printed  in  (lie  United  States. 
263 


THE  BUILDING  OF  A   BOOK 

In  obtaining  international  copyright,  publication 
on  the  same  day  here  and  abroad  is  necessary,  and 
this  is  sometimes  a  cause  of  considerable  incon- 
venience in  actual  practice.  When  a  New  York 
publisher  wishes  to  copyright  in  England  a  novel 
which  he  is  about  to  publish,  he  must  prepare  six 
special  copies  of  the  finished  book,  bind  them  in 
cloth,  print  the  copyright  notice  on  the  back  of  the 
title-page,  and  the  name  and  address  of  the  London 
firm  or  the  individual  who  is  willing  to  act  as  the 
English  publisher  of  the  book,  and  forward  the 
copies  to  that  person.  At  the  same  time  he  will 
write  to  this  agent,  telling  him  of  the  shipment 
and  requesting  him  to  enter  the  book  for  copy- 
right and  publish  it  in  England  on  or  about  such 
a  date.  He  will,  of  course,  allow  sufficient  time 
for  the  books  to  reach  London,  and  he  will  carefully 
point  out  in  his  letter  any  American  holidays  which 
occur  near  the  probable  date  of  publication.  Upon 
receiving  the  books,  the  London  agent  will  cable 
the  New  York  publisher  the  date  on  which  he  will 
publish  the  book,  taking  care  to  allow  an  interval 
of  a  day  or  two,  because  of  a  possible  delay. 

On  the  day  agreed  upon,  the  New  York  pubUsher 
proceeds  to  copyright  and  publish  his  book  in  this 
country  in  the  usual  manner,  while  the  London 
agent  does  the  same  abroad,  delivering  to  the 
British  Museum  one  copy  of  the  book,  and  to 
Stationer's  Hall,  for  use  in  certain  libraries,  four 
copies.  Both  of  them  will  on  that  day  sell  at  least 
264 


COPYRIGHTING 

one  or  two  copies  which  will  constitute  a  legal 
publication. 

It  is  the  custom  with  many  publishers  to  es- 
tabUsh  the  pubHcation  day  of  all  of  their  books, 
by  displaying  a  few  copies,  or  by  actually  selHng 
one  or  more  copies  to  some  one.  In  the  case  of  a 
very  popular  copyrighted  book  which  it  is  desirable 
to  have  the  retailers  all  over  the  country  begin  to  sell 
on  the  same  day,  it  is  deemed  safer  to  make  this 
technical  publication  before  any  of  the  books  are 
distributed  through  the  trade.  A  record  of  the 
first  sales  entered  in  a  publisher's  sales-book  in  the 
course  of  business  would  effectually  prevent  any 
one  from  claiming  in  after  years  a  right  to  reprint 
a  book  on  the  ground  that  the  claim,  title,  and 
copies  were  not  originally  filed  until  after  the  book 
had  been  put  upon  the  market. 

Under  a  recent  amendment  in  our  law,  an  author 
of  a  book  in  a  foreign  language,  who  is  a  citizen  of 
one  of  the  foreign  countries  which  allows  to  our 
citizens  the  same  copyright  privileges  as  are  allowed 
to  its  own  countrymen,  is  permitted  to  file  in  the 
Copyright  Office  within  thirty  days  after  its  publi- 
cation in  a  foreign  country  a  copy  of  his  book  with 
a  formal  declaration  that  he  is  the  author  and  that 
he  intends  to  translate  it  or  to  print  it  in  its  original 
language  and  to  apply  for  copyright  in  the  United 
States.  After  doing  this,  he  is  allowed  one  year  in 
which  to  com[)k'te  his  proposed  translation  or  to  print 
it  in  the  original  language  and  coi)yright  it  here. 
265 


THE   BUILDING  OF  A   BOOK 

Before  this  statute  was  passed,  two  or  more  per- 
sons could  translate  a  foreign  book,  and  each  could 
copyright  his  own  translation.  Every  copy  of  a 
book  for  which  such  protection  is  desired  under 

this  law  must  bear  a  notice  stating,  "PubHshed 

Nineteen  Hundred  and Privilege  of  copyright 

in  the  United  States  reserved  under  the  Act  ap- 
proved March  3,  1905,  by  A.  B." 

Only  the  author  or  his  assignee  {i.e.  the  pro- 
prietor) may  secure  copyright  in  a  book.  An 
author  may  transfer  orally  aU  or  part  of  his  rights 
before  pubUcation,  but  after  pubUcation  it  is 
necessary  for  him  to  make  the  assignment  by  some 
form  of  written  instrument.  In  order  to  make  it  a 
valid  assignment,  the  original  instrument  must  be 
sent  to  be  recorded  in  the  office  of  the  Librarian 
of  Congress  within  sixty  days  after  its  execution. 
The  fee  for  recording  an  assignment  is  one  dollar. 
After  the  original  document  has  been  recorded,  it  is 
signed  and  sealed  and  returned  to  the  sender,  who 
should  preserve  it  with  the  certificate. 

It  is  a  common  practice  to  have  in  the  contract 
between  the  author  and  his  publisher  a  clause 
assigning  to  the  pubhsher  all  of  the  author's  rights 
for  the  "full  term  of  copyright  and  for  any  and  all 
renewals."  The  agreement,  of  course,  includes 
other  provisions  such  as  for  the  pa5anent  of  the 
usual  royalties,  accounting,  etc.  Having  been 
made  before  pubUcation  such  an  assignment  does 
not  need  to  be  recorded  in  the  Copyright  Office. 
266 


COPYRIGHTING 

The  history  of  copyright  is  an  extremely  interest- 
ing subject,  but  it  cannot  be  properly  treated  in 
the  Ihnits  of  this  article.  It  may  be  mentioned, 
however,  that  the  first  copyright  law  was  enacted 
by  Parliament  during  Queen  Anne's  reign  and  is 
known  as  "8  Anne,  c.  9."  This  statute  provided 
that  an  author  should  have  complete  control  of  his 
literary  productions  during  a  first  term  of  fourteen 
years  after  publication,  and  a  renewal  term  of  the 
same  length,  and  provided  penalties  against  piracy. 
A  great  many  questions  concerning  this  law  arose 
from  time  to  time  in  trials  before  various  courts, 
but  perhaps  the  chief  one  of  interest  was  that  of 
whether  the  limitation  of  the  period  during  which 
it  granted  protection  had  destroyed  the  author's 
rights  which  had  existed  previously.  For  fifty 
years  after  the  passage  of  the  law,  tlie  decisions 
were  that  the  right  of  ownership  existed  for  all 
time  as  a  right  in  common  law  unaffected  by  the 
statute,  but  in  1774  the  highest  English  court 
held  that  while  the  rights  of  the  author  hvUnv.  tlie 
publication  of  his  book  remained  unaffected,  after 
publication  he  had  no  rights  except  during  the 
periorl  specified  by  tlic  statute.  This  decision  is 
still  believed  by  many  authorities  to  have  been  a 
wrong  one,  ]:)ut  it  has  been  the  basis  for  all  subse- 
quent ro|)yriglit  law  in  this  coimtry  as  well  as  in 
England.  Therefore  ;n  the  United  Slates  to-day, 
the  right  of  ownersiiip  lies  in  the  author  until  his 
work  is  published,  but  upon  publication  lie  has  no 
267 


THE   BUILDING  OF  A  BOOK 

rights  except  those  given  him  by  law,  and  these  he 
can  obtain  only  by  a  strict  compliance  with  the 
requirements  of  the  law.  Any  one  who  is  suffi- 
ciently interested  to  read  the  first  hundred  pages  of 
Drone's  "Treatise  on  the  Law  of  Property  in  Intel- 
lectual Productions"  will  be  well  repaid  for  the 
efTort,  and  will  obtain  considerable  light  upon  how 
the  "right  of  copying,"  or  printing,  a  book  de- 
veloped, why  its  duration  is  not  unlimited,  and 
why  we  must  observe  certain  formahties  in  order 
to  protect  our  literary  work  by  it. 


268 


PUBLICITY 

By  Vivian  Burnett 

The  duty  of  bringing  the  productions  of  a  pub- 
lishing house  to  the  attention  of  the  public  is  a 
very  important  one,  and  much  depends  upon  the 
cleverness  and  energy  with  which  it  is  discharged. 
It  can  easily  be  seen  that  no  matter  how  good  the 
books  brought  out  by  a  firm,  they  would  be  likely 
to  remain  on  stockroom  shelves  if  readers  were  not 
properly  made  aware  of  their  issue.  The  name 
"PubUcity  department"  is  the  most  descriptive 
title  that  can  ho  given  to  the  part  of  the  staff  de- 
voting its  energies  to  the  many  variations  of  news- 
spreading  involved  in  this  work. 

Publicity  involves  both  editorial  and  commercial 
olemcnts.  From  the  editorial  side  it  is  of  prime 
importance  that  the  person  in  charge  of  the  pub- 
licity have  at  the  very  beginning  a  complete  and 
definite  idea  of  the  reasons  that  have  ruled  in  the 
acceptance  of  a  book,  —  what  class  of  people  it 
was  published  for,  and  just  what  species  of  a  book 
it  is  considcrcfl  to  be.  Is  it  purposed  to  af)p(nd  to 
a  certain  religious  class  of  pc-opU;?  Is  it  for  tiie 
distinctly  literary?  Perhaps  it  is  one  of  those 
269 


THE  BUILDING  OF  A  BOOK 

volumes  on  the  border  line  between  a  juvenile  and 
an  adult's  book,  which  may  be  presented  either 
as  a  volume  for  young  or  for  grown-up  folks.  The 
publicity  man  must  be  in  full  understanding  of  this 
estimate  before  he  can  do  his  work  properly.  On 
the  commercial  side,  he  must  know  just  the  feehng 
of  the  trade  in  regard  to  an  author  and  any  type 
of  book;  and  must  be  in  close  touch  with  the 
salesmen,  not  only  at  the  beginning,  but  all  through 
the  life  of  the  volume.  He  can  learn  from  them 
what  amount  of  success  the  author's  previous 
books  have  met,  and  thus  be  enabled  to  present 
his  volume  in  a  way  that  will  hitch  on  to  a  pre- 
vious success  or  avoid  the  odium  of  a  recent  fail- 
ure. Salesmen  can  help  him  to  know  the  interests 
of  every  section  of  the  country,  so  that  advantage 
can  be  taken  of  them  in  bringing  the  book  to  the 
local  bookseller's  attention  and  influencing  him 
to  a  special  effort  in  its  behalf. 

P>w  people  are  aware  of  the  influence  exerted 
by  the  book  clerk,  who  can  substitute  something 
"just  as  good"  much  more  easily  than  a  drug  or 
dry  goods  clerk,  especially  if  he  has  a  good  argu- 
ment to  offer.  The  largest  part  of  the  publicity  of 
a  publishing  house  is  aimed  to  influence  the  general 
reader,  but  more  and  more  attention  is  to-day  being 
paid  to  the  salesman  in  the  bookshop,  and  quite 
wisely,  too.  He  cannot  be  expected  to  read  all 
the  books,  and  any  effort  made  to  give  him  an  ac- 
quaintance with  your  books  that  goes  beyond  their 
270 


PUBLICITY 

covers  is  clear  gain  to  him,  to  the  pubhsher,  and 
cUstinctly  to  the  book-buying  pubUc. 

Now,  a  book  can  be  made  or  marred  by  the  piib- 
Ucity  it  gets.  If  it  is  wrongly  launched,  it  will 
have  an  uphill  climb,  whatever  its  virtues.  This 
is  especially  true,  as  a  result  of  the  fact  that  a  good 
deal  is  written  and  printed  about  a  book  before  it 
is  off  press  and  present  to  speak  for  itself. 

One  general  rule  should  be  most  strictly  adhered 
to  in  pubhcity,  and  that  is,  be  honest  and  be  sin- 
cere. Nowhere  is  the  rule  "honesty  is  the  best 
policy"  more  unanimously  justified.  You  may 
be  as  enthusiastic  as  you  please,  but  the  book 
should  be  put  forward  for  what  it  really  is.  Only 
under  such  handling  docs  it  stand  a  chance  for  the 
full  success  its  qualities  warrant.  This  all  reverts 
to  the  question  of  the  editorial  conception  of  a 
volume.  Some  books  are  not  made  for  great 
sellers;  they  are  written  for  the  keen  enjoyment 
of  a  select  educated  few ;  and  if  so  presented  that 
they  fall  into  the  hands  of  the  popular  novel  de- 
vourer,  they  will  surely  be  condenmed,  and  the 
condemnation  will  reach  and  have  its  effect  uj)on 
many  who  should  legitimately  have  bought  the 
book.  On  the  other  hand,  a  novel  of  no  literary 
c|uulity  thrust  into  the  hands  of  a  person  of  bookish 
tastes  will  make  an  influential  enemy,  who  will 
doubtless  have  among  his  followers  many  persons 
to  whom  the  brtok  would  apjieal.  It  is  best  to  find 
out  what  people  will  take  the  book,  and  advertise 
271 


THE  BUILDING   OF  A   BOOK 

it  to  them.  The  process  of  emasculating  your 
presentation  of  it  by  cutting  out  everything  that 
would  keep  anybody  from  reading  it  is  a  dangerous 
one.  The  disUkes  of  the  world  of  readers  are  too 
many  for  one  to  be  able  to  dodge  them  all,  and, 
after  all,  most  of  us  hke  a  positive  rather  than  a 
negative  volume.  Just  because  many  people  do  not 
read  essays,  —  to  take  an  extreme  case,  —  is  no 
reason  for  avoiding  the  statement  that  yours  is  a 
volume  of  essays.  Fortunately,  there  are  thousands 
upon  thousands  of  people  who  do  read  essays ;  and 
if  the  book  is  a  good  book  of  essays,  they  will  bring 
their  influence  —  that  word-of-mouth  influence 
which  is  almost  as  powerful  as  a  "puff"  by  Presi- 
dent Roosevelt  —  to  bear  upon  non-essay  reading 
people,  and  you  will  be  the  gainer  by  that  much 
for  your  wisdom  and  honesty. 

These  observations  are  germane,  and  worthy 
consideration  because  commercialism  and  the 
endeavor  to  produce  big  sellers  are  always  an  in- 
fluence to  overstate,  misstate,  and  be  extravagant 
in  the  praise  of  a  volume.  But  such  extravagance 
always  discounts  itself  in  the  mind  of  the  reader, 
and  experience  has  pretty  definitely  proved  that 
what  a  prospective  buyer  wants  is  a  straightforward 
concise  indication  of  the  story  and  its  quaUty.  A 
word  of  praise  quoted  from  a  review  may  help  him 
make  up  his  mind,  yet  he  probably  knows  it  is  a 
pretty  poor  book  of  which  some  newspaper  doesn't 
say  "Holds  the  reader's  interest  from  cover  to 
272 


PUBLICITY 

cover"  or  "We  hail  the  author  of  this  volume  as 
one  of  the  most  promising  of  our  American  writers." 

In  considering  the  practical  details  of  pubhcity, 
it  will  be  clearest  to  take  them  in  chronological 
order.  First:  The  book  should  be  thoroughly 
and  critically  read.  The  person  in  charge  of  the 
pubhcity  ought  to  have  every  volume  put  into  his 
hands  as  soon  as  it  is  accepted.  When  he  has  read 
it  thoroughly  and  has  formed  his  idea  of  it,  he 
discusses  it  thoroughly  with  the  person  responsible 
for  its  acceptance.  From  this  discussion,  in  which 
the  sales  department  is  represented,  evolves 
naturally  the  "editorial  attitude"  upon  which 
every  Une  of  future  publicity  and  every  sentence 
of  salesman's  talk  will  be  based.  Without  a  com- 
plete understanding  throughout  the  establishment 
of  the  "editorial  attitude"  the  entire  pubhcity 
will  be  aimless  and  unconvincing. 

Tlie  first  work  in  publicity  on  a  season's  book 
is  probably  the  catalogue,  which  must  be  had  ready 
for  the  salesmen  when  they  go  off  on  their  trips. 
Tlie  aim  of  the  catalogue  is  to  present  as  full  an 
account  of  the  book  as  possil)le.  It  is  meant  for 
the  eye  of  an  interested  person,  who  can  be  counted 
upon  to  read  rather  a  lengthy  notice.  Every 
possil)le  (U'tail  of  price,  numl)er  of  illustrations, 
paper,  size,  kind  of  binding,  taljle  of  contents, 
previous  works  by  the  same  author,  are  given, 
and  thus  it  becomes  a  complete  reference  book. 
It  is  the  general  custom  of  publishing  houses  to 
273 


THE  BUILDING  OF  A   BOOK 

issue  a  complete  catalogue  in  the  Fall,  with  a 
supplemental  catalogue  in  the  Spring  containing 
the  books  of  the  Spring  season.  Most  firms  also 
bring  out  a  Fall  hst,  to  present  their  Fall  books, 
which  would  be  buried  beyond  notice  in  a  bulky 
complete  catalogue.  In  this  Fall  Ust  not  infre- 
quently the  Spring  books  are  included,  making 
what  is  really  an  annual  catalogue.  These  three 
catalogues  are  essential,  and  they  are  as  a  rule 
supplemented  by  many  special  book  Usts  and 
pamphlets.  A  holiday  catalogue  is  a  steady  insti- 
tution in  nearly  every  pubUshing  house.  Its 
aim  is  to  present  to  Christmas  buyers  the  most 
attractive  volumes  of  the  house's  issue,  and  it  is 
usually  elaborate,  with  many  illustrations,  a  fine 
cover,  and  it  is  often  printed  in  colors.  Then  there 
are  frequently  issued  catalogues  of  books  on  special 
subjects,  art,  children's  books,  special  editions,  etc. 

The  uses  of  catalogues  are  many.  A  large 
number  are  sent  to  the  publisher's  best  friend, 
the  bookseller,  —  sometimes  imprinted  with  his 
name,  —  who  distributes  them.  They  also  go  out 
by  mail  to  special  Usts  of  people  who  are  known  to 
be  interested  in  books,  and  a  large  number  are 
sent  to  persons  who  write  asking  information. 

In  elaborateness  the  circular  follows  close  on  the 
catalogue,  and  it  has  quite  as  wide  if  not  a  wider 
field.  It  is  large  or  small,  depending  upon  the  im- 
portance of  the  book.  Sometimes  it  reaches  the 
dignity  of  a  bound  pamphlet,  but  it  is  usually 
274 


PUBLICITY 

a  single  leaf  or  at  most  a  four-page  folder.  Here 
again,  all  necessary  information  of  price  and  con- 
tents is  given  at  length.  But  as  the  person  into 
whose  hands  the  circular  falls  cannot  be  counted  on 
to  be  interested  beforehand,  the  whole  make-up 
and  arrangement  of  the  circular  is  calculated  for 
drawing  attention  and  fixing  interest.  The  circu- 
lar, therefore,  must  be  made  attractive. 

And  here  should  be  introduced  a  word  in  general 
on  the  appearance  of  the  printed  matter  that  is  sent 
out  by  a  pubhshing  house.  It  must  begood  printing. 
It  must  be  attractive  printing.  It  is  the  indication 
to  the  people  whose  eyes  it  meets  of  the  work  of 
the  house  it  advertises.  Few  people  want  to  buy 
badly  made  books ;  and,  unconsciously,  if  a  circu- 
lar or  catalogue  is  commonplace  and  badly  printed, 
those  qualities  will  be  attached  to  the  book  adver- 
tised. And  it  is  quite  true,  on  the  other  hand,  that 
the  distinction  and  comely  appearance  of  a  circu- 
lar will  prejudice  in  favor  of  the  book.  Moreover, 
a  circular's  service  can  be  rendered  only  when  it 
attracts  attention,  and  what  is  spent  in  aiding  it 
to  catch  tho  cyo,  through  making  it  artistically 
beautiful  and  printing  it  in  color,  will  bring  its 
return  and  more  in  the  added  efficiency  produced. 
There  are,  doubtloss,  people  wIkj  would  not  be 
affected  by  bad  printing,  but  people  of  taste,  the 
people  who  most  influence  the  sale  of  l^ooks,  are 
sure  to  be  antagonized. 

Probably,  the  most  useful  circular  of  all  is  the 
•275 


THE  BUILDING  OF  A  BOOK 

little  leaf  or  "slip"  circular.  It  is  printed  on  both 
sides,  and  is  inserted  between  the  leaves  of  books 
of  similar  interest  to  the  one  it  advertises,  usually 
about  three  to  a  book.  It  is  made  the  size  of  the 
ordinary  business  envelope,  for  it  is  also  used  in 
direct  circularization  of  lists  and  as  an  enclosure 
with  bills,  statements,  and  sometimes  with  general 
correspondence.  Often,  when  advertising  two  or 
more  books,  it  has  four  or  even  eight  pages,  though 
the  latter  makes  it  almost  too  bulky  for  insertion 
in  books.  These  larger  circulars  have  an  order  form 
attached  giving  the  hst  of  books,  and  a  place  for 
the  name  and  address  of  the  prospective  buyer,  — 
a  device  to  make  it  as  easy  as  possible  for  him  to 
order  his  selection.  When  such  circulars  are  in- 
serted in  books  either  the  order  form  is  left  off,  or 
something  substituted  in  its  place,  for,  as  can 
readily  be  seen,  the  order  form  is  a  bid  for  direct 
business  by  the  pubhsher  which  would  naturally  be 
obnoxious  to  the  bookseller.  Larger  and  more  elab- 
orate circulars  than  these  as  a  rule  are  used  only  for 
direct  circularization.  The  subject  of  circulariza- 
tion is  much  too  important  and  compHcated  to  be 
exhausted  in  a  few  paragraphs,  or  even  in  an  ex- 
tended article.  Enough  has  been  said  here,  how- 
ever, at  least  to  suggest  the  circular's  field. 

The  next  problem  in  publicity  to  be  taken  up  is 

the  poster.     The  poster  has  had  its  ups  and  downs, 

and  in  some  quarters  is  a  somewhat  discredited 

form  of  advertising,  but  it  has  its  value.    The 

276 


PUBLICITY 

booksellers  always  demand  posters.  The  one  great 
argument  against  them  is  that  posters  good  enough 
to  attract  attention,  that  is,  with  a  good  design 
and  in  colors,  are  somewhat  expensive  for  book 
advertising.  If  properly  exhibited,  they  sell  books, 
but  the  difficulty  Ues  in  the  fact  that  if  they  are  too 
attractive,  they  are  hkely  to  find  their  way  into  a 
poster  collector's  portfoho  before  they  have  been  ex- 
posed long  on  the  board.  Yet,  especially  with  lead- 
ing books  of  fiction,  this  is  one  of  the  risks  that 
must  be  taken,  for  with  each  such  pubhcation,  the 
pubHc  eye  must  be  caught  with  the  fact  of  the 
book's  issue,  and  for  this  purpose  a  striking  poster 
has  no  equal.  For  serious  books  inexpensive  clear 
type  posters  are  quite  sufficient. 

The  book  being  now  nearly  off  press,  there  will 
be  needed  some  matter  for  the  paper  jacket  that 
slips  over  and  protects  the  cloth  cover  while  the 
book  is  on  the  stall.  Most  important  is  the  brief 
note  on  the  front  that  serves  to  indicate  the  quality 
of  the  volume  and  thus  guide  the  purchaser.  On 
a  book  of  fiction  fifty  or  not  more  than  seventy- 
five  words  of  the  very  best  possible  presentation 
of  the  book  is  required,  llore  is  the  place  where 
most  of  all  the  prospective  purchaser's  interest  must 
be  aroused.  Here  the  mo.st  felicitous  publicity 
inspiration  is  needed  —  and  the  problem  is  to  in- 
dicate the  story,  yet  not  tell  it,  and  to  pique  curi- 
osity to  the  buying  point.  On  books  of  a  serious 
nature  a  jacket  note  is  just  as  es.sential,  if  not  more 
277 


THE  BUILDING  OF  A  BOOK 

so,  but  the  problem  is  different.  The  prospective 
purchaser  of  such  a  book  as  "Irish  History  and  the 
Irish  Question,"  "The  Flower  Garden,"  for  exam- 
ple, has  an  interest  in  the  subject  already  aroused. 
What  he  wishes  to  know  is  the  scope  of  the  volume 
and  the  manner  in  which  the  subject  is  treated. 
The  note  for  such  a  volume,  therefore,  should  con- 
tain a  plain,  straightforward  statement  of  the 
importance  of  the  book,  the  point  of  view  taken, 
a  brief  table  of  contents  indicating  the  most 
important  divisions  of  the  subject,  and  some 
mention  of  the  author's  special  quahfication  for 
writing  the  volume.  On  the  back  of  the  paper 
"jacket"  and  on  the  little  flaps  that  turn  at  the 
sides  of  a  book,  it  is  customary  to  put  advertise- 
ments of  cognate  books.  Often  these  paper  jackets 
are  treated  in  elaborate  poster  style,  and  for  good 
reason,  since  as  a  rule  they  are  the  first  part  of  a 
book  a  buyer  sees,  and  his  attention  is  not  likely 
to  be  attracted  if  only  cheap  paper  be  used. 

The  date  of  the  book's  pubHcation  has  probably 
now  been  set,  and  the  next  step  in  pubHcity  — 
a  most  important  one  —  is  the  sending  out  of  re- 
view copies.  This  is  the  last  thing  in  which  hap- 
hazard methods  would  be  permissible.  The  list 
of  newspapers  who  get  comphmentary  copies  should 
be  carefully  selected,  not  so  much  with  an  eye  to 
size  of  circulation,  as  to  quality  and  standing.  A 
paper  that  is  known  to  give  attention  to  books  is 
worth  two  that  have  merely  large  circulations  and 
278 


PUBLICITY 

no  distinction;  &-st,  because  the  books  sent  will 
be  appreciatively  re\dewed,  and,  second,  because 
people  in  the  habit  of  buying  books  will  consult 
the  review  columns  and  be  influenced  by  them. 
There  are  possibly  one  hundred  and  fifty  or  one 
hundred  and  seventy-five  papers  in  the  United 
States  to  whom  it  would  be  profitable  to  send  a 
book.  A  great  many  more,  however,  think  they 
should  receive  them.  With  even  the  most  popular 
novel  two  hundred  review  copies  is  a  generously 
sufficient  number  to  place  for  review.  In  deciding 
where  these  should  go,  the  contents  of  the  book 
itself  is  of  course  the  guide.  Some  books  can  be 
calculated  to  appeal  more  to  one  section  of  the 
country  than  to  another  because  of  their  subject- 
matter.  Certain  classes  of  people  —  ministers, 
school-teachfTs,  sportsmen,  doctors  —  can  some- 
times be  drawn  upon  by  the  judicious  distribution 
of  a  few  complimentary  copies,  to  assist  the  sale 
of  a  book,  and  then  there  is  the  home  of  the 
author,  where  special  attention  can  always  be 
expected. 

Opinions  differ  as  to  the  amount  of  influence 
exerted  by  reviews  upon  tlio  fortunes  of  a  book. 
It  is  certainly  true  that  to  trace  direct  returns  from 
reviews  is  f)ftfn  diflifult.  Fr('(|U('nlly  books  which 
are  splendidly  reviewed  move  slowly,  and  there 
seems  no  explanation  of  their  failure  (o  "calch  on." 
They  may  be,  and  fre(|uently  are,  books  of  real 
value  and  (jualily.  The  history  of  jiublishing  is 
•J7!J 


THE  BUILDING  OF  A   BOOK 

full  of  such  mysteries.  On  the  other  hand, 
returns  are  visible  enough  when  a  book  is  slated 
by  the  press ;  there  its  power  is  amply  evident. 

The  American  press  is  notably  fair,  notably 
discriminating,  and  notably  independent.  It  gives 
its  own  views  fearlessly,  and  resents  any  efforts 
made  by  pubUshers  to  get  their  own  adjective- 
besprinkled  puffs  printed.  In  rush  seasons  it  will 
make  use  of  publisher's  description,  after  carefully 
blue-penciUing  obtrusive  adjectives,  but  it  goes 
no  farther.  In  fact,  the  newspaper-review  part 
of  publishing  pubUcity  is  best  left  alone.  The  book 
must  do  the  work  itself. 

The  book  has  now  reached  the  place  where  that 
which  is  commonly  called  advertising  should 
begin ;  that  is,  publicity  in  newspapers  and  maga- 
zines. The  use  of  newspapers,  to  any  great  ex- 
tent at  least,  is  a  comparatively  recent  develop- 
ment in  the  pubhshing  business,  dating  back  not 
much  more  than  ten  years.  Its  efficiency,  that  is 
to  say,  its  proportion  of  return  to  outlay,  is  far 
from  being  established.  While  at  the  beginning 
of  the  movement  great  rewards  were  reaped,  the 
light  of  more  mature  experience  seems  to  show  that 
those  books  which,  under  heavy  newspaper  adver- 
tising, reached  editions  of  100,000  to  150,000  were 
really  special  cases,  —  books  of  a  pecuharly  popu- 
lar, almost  low-grade,  quaUty,  that  had  an  excep- 
tional public.  It  is  sure  that  what  brought  success 
with  them  would  not  succeed  with  the  average 
280 


PUBLICITY 

publication.  For  this  reason,  publishers  to-day 
are  by  no  means  as  lavish  as  they  used  to  be  with 
their  appropriation  for  newspaper  advertising. 
Yet  even  in  this  era  of  retrenchment  a  very  large 
proportion  of  the  money  devoted  to  pubUcity  still 
goes  to  the  newspapers. 

While  it  would  be  fooHsh  to  attempt  formulat- 
ing a  set  of  fixed  rules  for  newspaper  advertising, 
there  are  certain  underlying  principles  that  should 
be  borne  in  mind. 

Books  are  in  the  class  of  luxuries ;  most  books  at 
least.  There  is  no  natural  demand  for  them  to 
assist  the  advertiser,  such  as  there  is  for  food-stuffs. 
With  a  book,  it  is  the  advertiser's  business  to  per- 
suade the  buyer  that  he  vn.\\  be  interested  or  in- 
structed or  amused  by  the  volume  to  the  value  of 
his  outlay,  be  it  a  quarter  or  fifty  dollars,  —  where 
in  the  matter  of  necessities  and  food  commodities 
the  advertiser's  task  is  the  much  more  simple 
one  of  proving  that  his  product  is  intrinr^ioally 
better  or  bfttcr  value  than  any  similar  thing  on  the 
market.  The  sale  of  a  book  depends  entirely  upon 
the  almost  artificial  dosire  that  is  created  for  it, 
whereas  with  other  things  there  is  a  real  need,  and 
it  is  necessary  only  to  prove  that  the  article  fills 
this  nood.  For  those  reasons  book  advertising  — 
with  piano,  picture,  music,  candy,  and  perhaps 
automobile  advertising  —  is  difficult  to  carry  out 
profitably.  Tt  is  tho  class  most  exponsivn  projior- 
tionately  to  the  value  of  the  product,  for  it  can 
2S] 


THE   BUILDING  OF  A  BOOK 

count  in  only  the  smallest  degree  upon  what  is 
known  as  the  "cumulative"  effect  of  a  campaign. 
Every  advertisement  of  such  an  article  as  a  break- 
fast food,  for  example,  whether  it  be  on  a  bill-board, 
in  a  newspaper,  or  in  a  circular,  adds  to  the  effect 
of  every  other  one.  The  repetition  of  the  name, 
whether  it  be  consciously  or  unconsciously  observed 
by  the  pubHc,  assists  in  forcing  attention  and  thus 
interest,  and  finally  results  in  a  sale.  Half  a 
milhon  dollars  can  be  spent  in  making  "Whipped 
Oats"  a  household  word.  Every  dollar  backs 
up  every  other  dollar,  and  the  demand  for  Whipped 
Oats  will  last  for  years.  "The  Return  from  Davy 
Jones, "  which  can  have  at  the  very  most  say  $5000 
spent  on  it,  benefits  the  very  least  from  the  cumu- 
lative effect,  and  the  demand  for  the  book  is  prac- 
tically over  in  a  year,  especially  if  it  be  a  popular 
novel.  Each  newspaper  advertisement  of  a  book 
must  in  fact  bring  returns  to  pay  for  itself,  and 
this,  of  course,  demands  the  very  cleverest  kind  of 
"copy." 

Many  elements  enter  into  the  popularity  and  sale- 
ability  of  a  book,  but  no  one  seems  to  know  just 
what  they  are.  Even  the  best  and  most  experi- 
enced readers  fail  to  pick  successes  —  let  big  books 
go  by  them,  and  conversely  praise  volumes  that 
turn  out  flat  failures.  Yet  certain  things  in  the 
line  of  pubHcity  can  be  counted  upon  to  assist  in 
making  a  volume's  success.  The  name  of  a  well- 
known  author  is  the  best  asset  a  book  can  have. 
282 


PUBLICITY 

That  gets  it  good  advance  sales  and  a  quick  and 
appreciative  attention  from  the  book  reviewers. 
In  this  respect,  nothing  could  better  exemplify 
the  New  England  homely  proverb,  "Sich  as  has, 
gits."  The  work  of  pubUcity  on  a  book  by  a  well- 
known  author  is  easy,  if  care  is  taken  always  to 
bring  that  author's  name  forward  in  connection 
with  his  previous  achievements.  This  is  espe- 
cially true  in  regard  to  newspaper  advertising. 

Doctors  violently  disagree  over  book  advertis- 
ing principles,  and  possibly  it  is  best  to  start  by 
saying  that  there  are  none  and  that  each  book  is 
a  rule  unto  itself.  Certainly  a  close  and  careful 
study  of  a  book's  points  and  the  class  of  people 
to  whom  it  would  likely  appeal,  its  "editorial 
qualities,"  is  the  only  proper  Imsis  for  a  campaign. 
For  the  average  novel  by  a  well-known  author  the 
main  problem  is  to  let  the  world  know  it  has  been 
issued.  Therefore,  in  advertising  in  a  newspaper, 
the  announcement  of  the  book's  publication  should 
be  made  in  such  a  manner  that  all  the  nvulers  of 
that  paper  will  notice  it.  The  cami)aign  should 
start  with  what  is  technically  known  as  a  "must 
be  seen"  notice.  It  is  the  publisher's  business 
to  shout  loud  enough  to  be  heard  above  the  clatter 
of  the  small  advertisements,  ".lust  out  —  New 
book  by  Donan  Coyle,  'The  Return  from  Davy 
Jones.'"  If  some  pijjuant  descri|)t  ion  of  the  book 
follow,  this  should  be  sure;  to  send  all  those  readers 
of  the  paper  interested  in  Donan  Coyle  to  the  book- 
2S:3 


THE  BUILDING   OF  A  BOOK 

shop  in  search  of  the  new  volume.  Much  smaller 
"  ads."  following  from  time  to  time,  that  may  catch 
the  eye  of  the  forgetful  ones  and  arouse  their  in- 
terest by  some  words  of  personal  or  press  commenda- 
tion on  the  volume,  would  close  a  campaign  of  this 
kind,  which  would  have  naturally  gathered  in  its 
trail  many  readers  and  even  non-readers  not  dis- 
tinctly interested  in  Donan  Coyle.  It  would  at 
least  have  started  the  mouth-to-mouth  advertising 
of  the  book,  to  which  paid-for  advertising  can 
after  all  be  regarded  only  as  assistant  and  support. 
In  fact,  when  all  is  said  and  done  the  greatest  ser- 
vice advertising  does  is  in  reminding  people  of  books 
they  have  heard  praised,  and  the  best  advertising 
is  that  placed  on  the  road  to  the  bookstalls,  a  strong 
argument  for  the  poster,  since  it  is  exhibited  in 
front  of  the  bookshop,  where  it  can  catch  the  passer- 
by. In  tune  with  this  conception  of  the  advertise- 
ment as  an  announcement  is  this  general  rule  — 
advertise  prominently  the  name  of  the  book,  and 
the  author's  name  if  it  is  important.  These  are  com- 
modities you  have  to  sell,  the  things  you  wish  peo- 
ple to  ask  for  —  just  as  the  bacon-maker  wants  you 
to  ask  for  "Blank's  Bacons." 

For  books  that  have  no  well-known  author's 
name  to  assist  them,  or  those  for  which  a  large  sale 
cannot  be  forecasted  at  the  start,  —  books  that 
appeal  to  the  select  few,  —  other  and  more  inex- 
pensive methods  must  be  pursued.  In  most  such 
cases  it  is  probable  that  any  advertising  in  news- 
284 


PUBLICITY 

papers  would  be  unwise,  and  this  leads  to  the  sub- 
ject of  magazine  advertising,  which  is  much  higher 
grade  and  more  suited  to  such  books  of  quality. 
There  are  many  distinctly  htcrary  publications, 
the  subscribers  to  which  are  always  searching  for 
books  of  a  fine  type  —  an  interested  clientele  who 
wll  read  advertising  pages  rather  thoroughly, 
and  gladly  pay  good  prices  for  good  books.  Small 
advertisements  —  perhaps  a  page  of  small  adver- 
tisements of  good  books  —  in  a  magazine  of  this 
class  "will  bring  returns,  especially  if  the  books 
have  been  well  rcviewetl.  There  are  also  trade 
journals,  which  go  to  the  booksellers,  and  in  these 
the  publisher  must  announce  his  new  issues  well, 
—  describe  them  thoroughly,  and  give  some  idea 
of  what  he  intends  doing  in  the  way  of  energetic 
general  advertising.  The  aim  of  this  is  to  influ- 
ence booksellers  to  increase  their  orders. 

These  few  paragraphs  only  -scratch  the  surface 
of  a  broad  subject  of  extreme  interest.  Each  pub- 
lishing firm  has  develojK'd  through  its  experience 
its  own  principles  of  the  psychology  of  public 
opinion,  its  own  idea  of  the  ([ualities  a  book  should 
jjo.ssess,  and  its  own  way  of  getting  at  the  people. 
Results  are  frequently  so  surprising  that  one  is 
inelined  to  class  piii)lishing  anuuig  the  games  of 
chance.  It  is  certain  that  everybody  cannot  make 
a  success  at  it,  and  there  is  no  doubt  that  it  requires 
a  definite  endowment  of  genius. 

There  falls  to  the  publicity  {Icijrirliiieiil  IJic 
2S5 


THE  BUILDING  OF  A  BOOK 

writing  of  a  great  many  letters,  —  numbers  are  in 
answer  to  questions  concerning  books  and  authors, 
but  by  far  the  larger  number  are  in  the  nature  of 
circulars.  The  personal  typewritten  letter  or  the 
printed  typewTitten  letter  that  masquerades  as 
such,  has  a  power  equal  to  a  hundred  circulars. 
It  claims  attention  at  once,  if  it  does  not  declare 
itself  an  advertisement  on  the  outside,  where  a 
printed  circular  gets  swept  into  the  waste-paper 
basket  unread.  It's  expensive  —  about  three  cents 
a  letter  if  done  properly,  but  when  there  are 
special  ends  to  be  accompUshed,  such  as  calUng 
the  attention  of  the  clergy  to  a  novel  that  would 
suggest  sermons,  or  the  members  of  an  Audubon 
society  to  a  book  on  birds,  it  is  the  surest  and  most 
profitable  method. 

It  is  especially  in  a  mail  order  or  subscription 
book  concern  that  the  circular  letter  is  of  most  use. 
The  expensive  sets  of  such  concerns,  and  the  large 
profit  figured  on  them,  justify  such  a  costly  method 
of  pubhcity.  It  is  generally  made  more  expensive 
by  the  enclosure  in  the  envelope  of  return  postal 
cards  and  other  printed  material. 

This  subscription  business  is  a  business  by  itself 
and  conducted  quite  differently  from  average  pub- 
lishing. The  advertising  is  lavish,  and  the  under- 
lying principle  of  it  is,  that  the  prospective  pur- 
chaser wishes  a  complete  description  of  the  wares. 
Attractive  premium,  and  short-time  low-price  offers 
are  always  made,  and  the  endeavor  is  to  get  the 
286 


PUBLICITY 

prospective  customer  to  permit  the  set  of  volumes 
to  be  sent  on  inspection,  reliance  being  held  in  the 
abihty  to  make  him  keep  them  through  the  real 
quaUty  of  the  books,  assisted  by  a  series  of  "follow 
up"  letters  enlarging  upon  the  virtues  of  the  set. 
Lists  of  names  are  circularized,  and  "follow  up" 
letters  used  here  also  to  bring  orders. 

An  important  form  of  publicity  is  that  which  has 
grown  up  as  a  result  of  the  interest  shown  by 
readers,  especially  in  America,  in  the  personaUty 
of  authors  and  the  desire  to  know  what  is  happen- 
ing in  the  world  of  books.  This  very  natural  and 
legitimate  curiosity  affords  the  pubUsher  a  chance 
to  push  his  products  forward  in  an  unobtrusive 
way.  Because  it  is  to  all  appearances  unbiased, 
it  wields  quite  a  deal  of  influence,  especially  in 
building  uj)  the  reputation  of  an  author.  Every 
paper  tliat  pretends  to  any  hterary  standing  prints 
regularly  or  occasionally  a  column  of  Literary 
Chat,  in  which  is  given  brief  news  of  authors  and 
books.  There;  will  perhaps  be  a  immorous  anec- 
dote of  the  author  of  a  prominent  novel,  a  brief 
summary  of  a  book  shortly  to  be  issued,  some  com- 
ment by  a  well-known  person  on  a  well-known 
book,  a  biographical  sketch  of  a  new  author,  a 
telling  extract  from  a  book  of  serious  value,  a  note 
that  "Tlie  Return  from  Davy  Jones"  is  in  its 
nth  edition  —  all  of  it  really  news  and  of  interest. 
Some  newspapers  write  their  own  chat,  i)ut  tlic 
majority  print,  with  small  alteration,  such  as  is 
2S7 


THE  BUILDING  OF  A   BOOK 

furnished  by  the  publicity  departments  of  publish- 
ing houses,  which  send  out  weekly  or  monthly 
printed  or  typewritten  sheets  of  such  brief  items. 
In  this  way  Donan  Coyle  as  the  author  of  "The 
Return  from  Davy  Jones"  is  kept  before  the  pub- 
He,  The  pubhc  also  has  a  legitimate  desire  to  know 
something  of  the  appearance  of  the  author  of  a 
popular  novel  or  important  books  of  essays,  and 
the  newspaper  re\dewer  frequently  wishes  to  print 
a  portrait  with  his  review.  Here  the  pubHcity  de- 
partment steps  in  and  helps  him,  by  furnishing 
suitable  electrotype  portraits  upon  request,  and 
not  infrequently,  by  sending  out  proofs  with  in- 
teresting notes,  suggests  the  use  of  the  portrait. 
The  relation  between  a  Hterary  editor  who  wants  to 
print  the  book  news  and  a  manager  of  publicity 
is  a  mutually  beneficial  one.  If  they  cooperate  thus, 
they  can  be  of  great  assistance  to  each  other,  and  in 
the  exchange  each  one  gets  value  received.  By  a 
thousand  little  methods  and  de^dces  the  person  in 
charge  of  publicity  can  furnish  desired  information 
and  get  this  undersurface  publicity,  and  by  putting 
out  bona-fide  news  and  really  good  stories  about 
them,  bring  even  his  lesser  light  authors  into  promi- 
nence. In  this  field,  as  in  all  others,  the  well-known 
authors  advertise  themselves  and  set  up  a  demand 
for  pubHcity. 

The  financial  end  of  PubHcity  is  full  of  complexi- 
ties.    The  question  of  how  much  an  expenditure 
per  volume  is  warranted  is  one  that  cannot  be 
288 


PUBLICITY 

answered  generally.  There  are  many  limiting 
and  defining  considerations.  First  of  all,  the  book 
itself.  If  it  is  the  kind  to  be  a  "big  seller,"  a  risk 
can  possibly  be  taken  on  a  larger  advertising  in- 
vestment than  would  be  warranted  in  the  case  of 
a  good  book  of  finer  quality  and  hmited  appeal. 
Certain  books  of  coarser,  more  obvious  qualities 
have  a  large  public  if  it  can  be  reached.  In  such 
cases  an  exceptional  efi'ort  will  bring  exceptional 
returns.  By  the  risk  of  a  large  advertising  outlay 
the  firm  may  get  big  profits;  while  a  flat  failure, 
because  the  large,  non-book-buying  public  had  not 
been  reached  through  newspaper  and  la\dsh  poster 
advertising  methods,  might  result  if  only  a  few  hun- 
dreds were  spent.  Judgment  of  the  finest  kind 
is  required  here,  and  it  cannot  always  decide 
rightly. 

How  much  to  .spend  depends  essentially  upon  the 
book,  and  there  is  no  hard  and  fast  rule.  Books 
have  been  known  to  reach  their  public  and  reach 
good  sales  at  an  advertising  outlay  of  about  one  cent 
per  copy.  Othfrs  have  had  fifty  cents  per  copy 
sold  spent  upon  thorn,  and  fallen  flat. 

The  publishing  bu.siness  is  not  one  in  wliicli  there 
are  groat  {)rofits,  and  tho  margin  botwocn  (lie  cost 
of  manufacturing  and  tho  wholcsalo  pric(>  is  small. 
This  small  amount  must  furnish  tho  author's 
royalty,  the  advortising  appropriation,  tlio  pub- 
hsher's  cost  of  doing  business,  and  his  proflt.  It 
can  be  seen  then  that  the  amount  of  royalty  paid 
289 


THE  BUILDING  OF   A   BOOK 

on  a  book  in  a  certain  degree  rules  the  amount  of 
advertising  that  can  be  done,  —  the  pubhsher  and 
author  are,  in  a  measure,  partners,  and  if  the  author 
demands  a  large  royalty,  he  thereby  cuts  down  the 
amount  the  publisher  can  afford  to  expend  in  ad- 
vertising his  book.  The  larger  the  appropriation 
for  advertising,  the  larger  the  chance  for  increased 
sales. 

It  is  difficult  to  make  any  generaUzation  on  the 
amount  that  should  be  devoted  to  pubhcity. 
Taking  the  $1.50  novel  as  a  standard,  it  might  be  said 
that  figuring  in  all  kinds  of  publicity  —  newspaper, 
magazine,  circular,  literary  notices,  etc. — from  ten 
to  twelve  per  cent  of  the  wholesale  price  on  the  first 
edition  of  10,000  would  be  a  liberal  allowance. 
On  more  expensive  volumes,  handled  as  subscrip- 
tion books,  a  much  larger  proportion  would  be  the 
rule.  On  new  books  other  than  fiction,  where  the 
sale  could  not  be  expected  to  reach  more  than  a 
few  thousand,  there  would  be  no  business  justifica- 
tion in  spending  so  much.  Such  books  have  more 
or  less  to  make  their  own  way. 

Publicity  is  an  essential  part  of  the  pubHshing 
business,  and  the  breadth  of  its  field,  as  well  as 
the  proper  way  to  apply  its  influence,  is  beginning 
to  be  more  correctly  understood.  Fortunately, 
for  all  concerned,  the  author  as  well  as  the  publisher 
and  the  book-buying  public,  it  is  a  power  that  can 
work  only  for  good,  and  in  a  good  cause.  It  has- 
tens the  fame  and  the  sales  of  a  really  good  book, 
290 


PUBLICITY 

but  its  power  with  a  bad  book  is  very  small  indeed. 
One  fact  has  developed  from  the  thousands  of  book 
advertising  campaigns,  and  it  is  this  —  that  you 
cannot  force  a  really  worthless  book  down  the 
throat  of  the  American  reading  public  however 
much  money  you  put  into  advertising.  You  may 
create  a  big  sale  for  a  very  hght  and  frothy  story, 
with  Uttle  to  recommend  it  from  the  literary  critic's 
point  of  view,  but  you  can  be  sure,  if  it  succeeds, 
your  novel  has  certain  positive,  if  rather  superficial 
virtues,  either  in  the  story,  in  the  local  color,  or 
in  the  method  of  telling.  And  when  one  contem- 
plates the  huge  success  of  Mrs.  Humphry  Ward's 
and  p]dith  Wharton's  distinguished  novels,  one  is 
obliged  to  accept  the  comforting  conviction  that 
the  reading  public  of  this  country  knows  a  good 
book  when  it  sees  it. 


201 


REVIEWING  AND  CRITICISING 

By  Walter  Littlefield 

About  60,000  volumes  are  annually  published  in 
Germany,  France,  Italy,  Great  Britain,  and  the 
United  States.  Germany  heads  the  list,  with 
something  less  than  25,000,  and  the  United  States 
ends  it,  with  between  five  and  six  thousand  titles, 
although  it  should  be  added  that  Continental 
figures  refer  to  all  material  bearing  an  imprint  pub- 
lished for  circulation  whether  pamphlet  or  book. 
Aside  from  purely  scientific  and  specialistic  pub- 
lications those  intended  for  public  perusal  of  all 
grades  of  literacy  and  intelligence  may  be  classified 
as  history,  biography,  travel,  belles-lettres  (in- 
cluding art,  criticism,  and  poetry),  and  fiction.  It 
is  the  work  of  the  literary  critic  to  write  about 
these  books  in  such  a  manner  that  neither  the 
author  nor  the  public  may  suffer  injustice  by  their 
purchase  or  non-purchase.  The  critic  must  ex- 
plain their  purpose,  point  out  their  merits  and 
imperfections,  and  compare  their  features  with  the 
features  of  other  books  on  the  same  subject.  In 
short,  he  should  tell  the  public  whether  to  read  the 
292 


REVIEWING   AND  CRITICISING 

book  or  not.     He  should  tlo  so  in  an  entertaining 
manner. 

Now  the  way  tliis  end  is  achieved  in  America 
often  excites  the  derision  of  the  Uterary  foreigner; 
for  although  most  American  reviews  are  readable 
enough,  they  often  lack  the  critical  emphasis  and 
literary  scope  and  color  so  conspicuous  in  the 
literary  criticism  of  the  British  and  Continental 
reviews.  But  the  foreigner  overlooks  the  fact 
that  American  reviewers  usually  have  something 
to  say  about  every  publication  which  claims  to 
appeal  to  a  reading  public,  and  that  many  of  these 
would  be  absolutely  ignored  by  foreign  critics,  who 
are  possibly  right  —  when  we  consider  their 
readers  —  in  selecting  only  what  they  deem 
worthy  of  their  knowledge  and  critical  acumen. 
The  foreign  man-of-letters'  idea  of  what  should 
constitute  the  functions  of  the  critic  I  find  most 
admirably  laid  down  in  Mr.  Arthur  Symons's  intro- 
duction to  a  new  edition  of  Coleridge's  "  Bio- 
graphia  Literaria "  in  Everyman's  Library.  Mr. 
tSymons  writes  :  — 

The  aim  of  friticism  is  to  distiDguish  what  is  cssontial  in 
the  work  (tf  a  writer;  and  in  onicr  to  do  this,  its  first  husi- 
nessmust  he  to  find  out  wlicre  he  is  different  from  all  other 
writers.  It  is  the  delight  of  the  eritir  to  i)raise;  hut  praise 
is  .scareely  a  part  of  his  duty.  He  may  often  seem  to  find 
himself  obliged  to  eondernn;  yet  condemnation  is  hardly  a 
neeessar>'  fjart  f)f  his  ofTir-e.  What  we  ask  of  him  is,  that 
he  .should  find  out  for  us  more  than  we  e.-iii  find  out  for 
ourselve.s :  traee  what  in  us  is  a  whim  or  leaning  to  it.s  re- 
mote home  or  centre  of  gravity,  and  exjjlain  why  we  are 

293 


THE  BUILDING  OF  A  BOOK 

affected  in  this  way  or  that  way  by  this  or  that  writer. 
He  studies  origins  in  effects,  and  must  know  himself,  and 
be  able  to  allow  for  his  own  mental  and  emotional  varia- 
tions, if  he  is  to  do  more  than  give  us  the  records  of  his 
hkes  and  dislikes.  He  must  have  the  passion  of  the  lover, 
and  be  enamored  of  every  form  of  beauty ;  and,  like  the 
lover,  not  of  aU  equally,  but  with  a  general  allowance  of 
those  least  to  his  liking.  He  will  do  well  to  be  not  without 
a  touch  of  intolerance :  that  intolerance  which,  in  the  lover 
of  the  best,  is  an  act  of  justice  against  the  second-rate. 
The  second-rate  may  perhaps  have  some  reason  for  exist- 
ence :  that  is  doubtful ;  but  the  danger  of  the  second-rate, 
if  it  is  accepted  "  on  its  own  merits,"  as  people  say,  is  that 
it  may  come  to  be  taken  for  the  thing  it  resembles,  as  a 
wavering  image  in  water  resembles  the  rock  which  it 
reflects. 

Obviously,  here  in  America  we  have  a  sympa- 
thetic tolerance  for  the  "  second-rate."  But  such 
tolerance  is  not  without  its  excuse.  The  fault  of 
the  uncritical  element  in  many  of  the  book  notices 
which  appear  in  American  newspapers  and  maga- 
zines lies  to  a  large  extent  at  the  door  of  the 
author  who  gives  us  material  which  humiliates  and 
silences  criticism,  although  a  certain  expository 
attention  must  be  given  for  the  very  fact  that  the 
book  invariably  has  a  public  awaiting  it.  For 
such  gratuitous  attention  the  author  should  be 
grateful.     At  least  his  public  is  not  misled. 

Literary  criticism  is  a  distinct  department  of  liter- 
ature, with  its  functions  and  limits  as  clearly  defined 
as  are  those  of  any  of  the  creative  departments,  — 
history,  biography,  fiction.  It  presupposes  on  the 
part  of  the  writer  the  possession  of  a  knowledge  of 
294 


REVIEWING  AND  CRITICISING 

permanent  literature,  of  the  rules  of  literary  con- 
struction, of  trained  taste  in  selecting  models, 
and  of  a  quick  imagination  capable  of  perceiving 
pertinent  comparisons  and  setting  forth  vivid  im- 
pressions. Writers  like  Lessing,  Victor  Cousin, 
Matthew  Arnold,  and  Jules  Lemaitre  have  exercised 
in  criticism  a  system  which  is  quite  as  capable  of 
exposition  and  analysis  as  that  of  the  historian, 
the  poet,  or  the  novelist.  In  America  this  system 
has  also  done  its  best,  without  entirely  prostituting 
its  art,  to  meet  the  exigencies  and  claims  of  pseudo- 
literary  production  and  its  sympathetic,  impres- 
sionable public. 

Until  within  quite  recent  years  there  were  only 
two  acknowledged  schools  of  criticism :  the 
scientific  and  the  classical.  The  former  gauged 
the  work  to  be  criticised  by  rule  and  measure ;  the 
latter  compared  it  with  models  which  had  long 
been  established  as  criterions  of  good  taste.  Then 
came  the  impressionistic  school,  in  which  the  critic, 
while  not  unmindful  of  accepted  and  aj)proved 
rules  of  construction  and  expression  or  of  classical 
f)aradigms,  allowed  the  author  more  license,  more 
individuaUty,  and  permitted  himself  the  same  free- 
dom in  noting  a  thing  good,  bad,  or  indifferont, 
becau.sc  it  so  appealed  to  his  personal  taste  at  the 
time  of  perusal  and  quite  independent  of  what 
harl  gone  before.  This  impressionistic  criticism  is 
essentially  a  personal  view,  and  without  it  very  few 
current  books  could  be  considered  critically  at  all. 
205 


THE  BUILDING  OF  A  BOOK 

Now  of  the  5000  odd  books  annually  brought  out 
in  the  United  States  there  are  possibly  not  more 
than  100,  including  half  a  dozen  novels,  which  are 
worthy  subjects  for  the  professional  critic.  If  this 
be  deemed  an  exaggeration,  one  has  only  to  look 
over  the  Publishers'  List  of  twenty-five  years  ago 
and  see  how  many  books  then  pubhshed  are  read 
to-day.  Why,  then,  do  the  4900  receive  any 
attention  ? 

Books,  hke  every  other  commercial  commodity, 
whether  presented  under  the  guise  of  art  or  science, 
have  their  production  regulated  by  the  law  of 
supply  and  demand.  The  ability  to  read  print 
in  the  United  States  is  pretty  general,  and  this 
ability  is  diffused  among  all  sorts  and  conditions 
of  people  of  vastly  varied  ideas  as  to  what  may 
give  instruction,  satisfaction,  or  pleasure  in  the 
form  of  books.  We  know  that  a  large  majority  of 
the  people  who  read  do  not  read  what  is  considered 
the  best.  The  enormous  circulation  of  the  "  Yellow 
Press,"  the  low  literary  value  of  books  of  rapidly 
succeeding  phenomenal  editions,  prove  this.  Criti- 
cism, except  in  acknowledged  "literary"  reviews, 
has  been  obliged  to  take  into  account  the  mental 
limitations  and  tastes  of  the  readers  of  the  4900 
books,  and  so  it  fixes  its  standard  of  popular  ex- 
position and  elucidation  at  a  little  above  the 
average  taste,  and  does  its  best  to  explain  accord- 
ing to  the  author's  own  lights  what  to  criticise 
would  be  remorselessly  to  condemn. 
296 


REVIEWING   AND  CRITICISING 

But  do  all  the  one  hundred  worthy  and  elect 
books  receive  correct  treatment  according  to  the 
tenets  of  criticism?  it  may  be  asked.  Probably 
not  at  every  hand  and  in  all  cases.  And  here  may 
be  introduced  another  cause  of  the  lack  of  proficient 
literary  criticism  noticed  by  the  literary  foreigner 
in  American  magazines,  and  especially  in  those 
pages  of  the  daily  and  weekly  press  devoted  to 
books.  Tlie  discussion  of  books  which  once 
occupied  several  pages  in  American  monthly 
magazines  is  now  principally  confined  to  the  books 
issued  by  the  publishing  house  which  also  pub- 
lishes the  magazine.  What  has  come  to  be  known 
as  the  "news  value"  of  books  cannot  suffer  a 
review  of  a  novel  by  a  prominent  author  or  of  a 
book  on  a  current  poUtical  or  sociological  topic  to 
appear  a  month  or  two  or  three  after  the  publica- 
tion of  the  book  itself.  The  eagerness  of  the 
I)ublic  can  hardly  wait  for  an  elaborate  review  in 
the  press.  Thus  the  newspapers  rival  one  another 
in  setting  before  their  readers  the  first  "news"  of 
the  book.  It  is  usually  impossible  to  expect 
"criticism"  in  such  active  circumstances.  The 
public  neither  expects  nor  desires  it.  This  leads 
to  expositions  in  which  are  incorj)oratc<l  generous 
citations  from  the  book,  anrl  from  this  the  public  is 
invited  to  form  its  own  opinion.  When  such  an  ex- 
position is  properly  done,  a  reader  can  tell  whether 
he  wishes  to  peruse  the  book  as  a  whole.  In  late 
years  this  system  of  exposition  has  been  growing 
297 


THE  BUILDING  OF  A   BOOK 

iu  popularity,  —  a  popularity  no  doubt  augmented 
by  the  reader's  increasing  desire  to  be  his  own 
critic,  —  so  now  only  the  more  important  historical, 
biographical,  and  travellers'  books  receive  expert 
criticism.  Why  wait  months  to  get  expert  opinion 
on  a  popular  book  on  Russia,  Ibsen,  or  a  journey 
in  search  of  one  of  the  poles,  while  the  public  is 
impatient  to  find  out  simply  whether  the  book  is 
entertaining?  And  again,  how  expert  is  expert 
opinion?  I  know  of  one  famous  biography  of  a 
famous  man  which,  having  been  accepted  as  "the" 
authority  for  five  years,  finally  had  its  pretensions 
demolished,  its  citations  proved  a  mass  of  forgeries, 
by  one  tireless  and  persevering  critic  who  would 
not  accept  the  "expert"  opinion  which  lauded  it 
to  the  skies  shortly  after  its  publication. 

Now  that  criticism,  or  rather  the  lack  of  it,  has 
been  explained,  it  may  be  of  some  interest  to  learn 
how  the  vast  number  of  books  which  is  annually 
put  forth  is  handled  by  the  editors  of  literary 
reviews  and  the  "book  pages"  of  the  daily  press. 
Having  for  nearly  ten  years  been  connected  with 
the  literary  supplement  of  a  New  York  daily 
which  prides  itself  on  ignoring  nothing  which  is 
published  with  the  idea  of  being  read,  my  ex- 
periences for  observation  have  been  somewhat 
unusual.  The  increase  in  the  number  of  books, 
and  the  eagerness  of  the  public  to  learn  about  them 
at  the  earliest  possible  moment,  have  caused  the 
daily  press  to  usurp  some  of  the  functions  formerly 
298 


REVIEWING  AND  CRITICISING 

enjoyed  by  the  monthly  reviews.  Tlie  latter  do 
little  more  than  mention  the  vast  majority  of 
publications  and  confine  more  and  more  their 
critical  talents  to  what  they  consider  conspicuous 
and  distinctive  literary  productions.  Purely  lit- 
erary periodicals  have  come  and  gone  and  left  few 
mourners.  The  pages  of  The  Bookman,  for  ex- 
ample, are  no  longer  confined  to  hterary  criticism, 
to  essays  on  bookish  topics,  to  gossip  of  author 
and  publisher. 

Tliere  are  four  distinct  publishing  periods  in  the 
book  world.  The  early  spring  season,  principally 
confined  to  those  books  which  could  not  be  made 
ready  to  meet  the  recent  holiday  season,  and  to 
routine  books,  —  books  which  on  account  of  copy- 
right exigencies  have  to  be  published  then,  books 
which  for  prestige  the  publisher  would  have  bear 
his  imprint,  etc.  Then  comes  the  late  spring 
season,  which  is  principally  confined  to  novels  of 
the  lighter  sort  and  to  books  for  supplonicntary 
school  reading  for  the  coming  autumn.  Toward 
the  end  of  August  the  first  Holiday  books  usually 
make  their  a{)p('araiicc.  They  increase  in  numl)er 
until  the  end  of  Se[)tember,  when  there  is  a  lull. 
From  the  middle  of  October  until  the  end  of 
November  there  is  a  perfect  outpour  of  books. 
The  months  of  November  and  December  until 
Christmas  Day  are  tin;  busiest  times  in  the  year 
for  the  reviewer. 

As  the  books  come  in  they  are  carefully  looked 
290 


THE  BUILDING  OF  A   BOOK 

over  by  the  one  who  is  known  as  the  "critic"  of 
the  review  or  paper.  He  has  men  and  women  on  his 
Usts  whose  pens  he  has  tried  before  —  they  may  be 
lawyers,  college  professors,  sportsmen,  society  men, 
professional  novel  readers,  etc.  He  considers  the 
author  of  the  book  at  hand,  its  seeming  importance, 
etc.,  and  despatches  it  to  a  critic.  An  expert 
writer  of  expositions  is  usually  ready  to  relieve 
him  of  volumes  upon  which  for  some  reason  he  does 
not  feel  justified  in  requesting  expert  opinion. 
Occasionally  he  makes  a  mistake  by  giving  out  for 
exposition  a  really  important  book.  The  expert 
who  has  been  impatiently  waiting  for  the  volume 
points  out  the  error.  The  work  of  a  well-known 
novelist  is  usually  sent  to  a  critic  who  is  familiar 
with  former  tales  by  the  same  author.  Juveniles 
are  handed  over  to  one  of  proved  sympathy  with 
stories  for  boys  and  girls  —  one  who  is  conserva- 
tive yet  quick  to  catch  a  new  element.  Books 
that  are  essentially  for  gifts  are  disposed  of  in  a 
similar  manner  —  to  one  who  has  proved  his  or 
her  ability  to  set  forth  artistic  features  in  books. 
New  editions  of  classics  are  turned  over  to  writers 
who  are  acquainted  with  the  mechanical  make-up 
of  a  book,  so  that  the  reader  may  learn  whether 
the  new  edition  of  the  favorite  author  is  well  bound, 
printed,  and  appropriately  decorated  and  illus- 
trated. And  among  the  hundreds  of  "brief 
notices,"  expositions,  impressions,  descriptions, 
and  long  and  short  essays  that  are  handed  in,  there 
300 


REVIEWING  AND  CRITICISING 

are  invariably  some  pieces  of  valuable  comment 
which  are  well  in  keeping  with  the  traditions  of 
professional  criticism.  The  critic  usually  returns 
the  book  with  his  article.  Tliese  books  are  ulti- 
mately collected  and  disposed  of  in  various  ways. 
They  may  be  sold  at  auction  to  members  of  the 
staff,  which  is  an  effective  way  of  getting  rid  of 
them  just  before  Christmas. 

Is  there  anj'  likelihood  of  an  improvement  in 
literary  criticism  —  any  chance  of  a  return  by  the 
daily  press  to  what  the  Reviews  of  the  past  gave 
and  tho.se  of  England  and  the  Continent  still  give? 
The  standard  of  criticism  is  determined  by  two 
forces:  the  quality  of  books  and  the  taste  of 
would-be  purchasers.  If  every  book  were  really 
"criticised,"  the  criticisms  of  many  would  be 
utterly  incoiiiprehoiisil)le  to  many  of  their  possible 
readers.  The  public  gets  the  l)ooks  it  desires;  the 
books  receive  the  attention  they  deserve.  When  the 
standard  of  reading  shall  l)e  raised,  so  that  the,  pub- 
lic shall  demand  bc'ltcr  books,  it  will  be  found  that 
more  books  will  receive  "serious"  attention.  As  it 
is  at  present,  the  public  does  not  desire  nuich  elal)0- 
rate,  fine  criticism.  It,  together  with  its  favorite 
authors,  would  be  sorely  dissatisfied  if  it  got  more. 
It  may  be  added  that,  in  my  humble  opinion,  the 
function  of  a  critic  as  an  arbiter  of  literary  taste 
is  measurably  overestimated.  Of  course,  a  man 
who  has  won  distinction  as  a  judge  of  books  and 
who  signs  his  articles  may  have  some  influence. 


THE  BUILDING  OF  A  BOOK 

But  it  seems  to  me  that  the  function  of  the  anony- 
mous reviewer  should  begin  and  end  by  explaining 
the  book  and  let  the  public  be  its  own  critic.  It 
will  certainly  be  in  the  end.  For  no  critic  ever 
killed  a  good  book;  none  ever  praised  an  un- 
worthy volume  into  success  and  fame. 


302 


THE   TRAVELLING   SALESMAN 

By  Harry  A.  Thompson 

The  increase  in  the  visible  supply  of  authors 
more  than  meets  the  demand,  A  manuscript 
once  accepted,  the  publisher  finds  no  lack  of  paper 
makers  ready  to  supply  him  with  any  grade  of  fair 
white  paper  that  he  may  wish  to  spoil.  Printers 
even  manifest  a  dignified  alacrity  to  set  the  type 
and  print  the  book,  and  binders  are  yet  to  be 
accused  of  any  disincUnation  to  cover  it. 

It  is  only  when  author,  paper  maker,  printer, and 
binder  have  done  with  their  share  in  the  exploita- 
tion of  literature  that  the  publisher  finds  that  the 
current  which  had  been  urging  him  gently  onward 
has  set  against  him.  Of  making  many  books 
there  is  no  end,  but  the  profitable  marketing  of  the 
same  is  vanity  and  vexation  of  spirit. 

Pinter  the  salesman. 

He  is  to  convince  the  bookseller,  who  is  to  con- 
vince the  public,  that  this  particular  book  — sliall 
we,  for  our  purpose,  christon  it  "  Last  Year's 
Nests  "  ? — is  the  great  Amoriran  novel  (whatever 
that  moans),  and  that  its  infhu^nce  on  the  reading 
of  unborn  gcjneration.s  will  be  measured  by  the 
rank  it  holds  in  the  list  of  the  six  best  sellers. 


THE  BUILDING   OF   A    BOOK 

Tlie  salesman  is  handicapped  not  a  little  by  the 
fact  that  it  is  neither  shoes,  nor  pig-iron,  nor  even 
mess-pork  that  he  is  selling,  and,  therefore,  supe- 
rior quality  of  workmanship,  inferior  price,  and 
personal  magnetism  count  for  little.  Persuasive- 
ness, which,  perhaps,  is  a  part  of  personal  mag- 
netism, counts;  so  does  an  intelligent  knowledge 
of  the  contents  of  the  book;  likewise  hard  work 
and  tactful  persistence;  also,  honesty.  But  op- 
posed against  the  combination  is  the  bookseller, 
on  guard  against  overstocking,  to  some  extent  a 
purchaser  of  a  pig  in  a  poke,  conscious  that  one 
unsold  book  eats  up  the  profit  on  five  copies  safely 
disposed  of. 

Time  was  when  good  salesmanship  consisted  in 
overstocking  a  bookseller ;  this  was  occasioned  less 
by  persuasiveness  than  by  overpersuasiveness. 
Regardless  of  the  merits  of  the  book  and  with  no 
more  than  a  nodding  acquaintance  with  its  con- 
tents, a  persuasive  salesman  could  "load"  a  cus- 
tomer —  as  he  called  it  out  of  the  customer's 
hearing  —  with  two  hundred  and  fifty  copies  of  a 
novel  that  had  no  other  merit  than  that  it  had 
been  written  by  a  novelist  whose  previous  book 
had  met  with  success.  The  significance  of  these 
figures,  two  hundred  and  fifty,  is  to  be  found  in  the 
maximum  discount  to  retailers  of  forty  and  ten 
per  cent  on  that  quantity.  Latterly,  the  publisher 
has  found  that  a  bankrupt  bookseller  has  few 
creditors  besides  publishers,  and  has  come  to  a 
304 


THE  TRAVELLING   SALESMAN 

realizing  sense  of  the  futility  of  clogging  the  dis- 
tributing machinery.  He  is  disposed,  therefore, 
to  exercise  some  restraint  upon  his  salesman's 
ardor.  Perhaps  it  were  better  to  say  that  the 
salesman,  grown  wiser,  is  more  disposed  to  aid  the 
bookseller  in  his  purchases  to  the  end  that  no  monu- 
ments of  unsold  failures  will  stare  him  in  the  face 
on  his  next  visit  to  the  customer's  store.  Yet 
even  to  this  day,  such  restraint  is  tempered  by  a 
certain  amount  of  moderation. 

All  of  which,  while  interesting  to  the  historian 
of  the  publishing  trade,  carries  us  too  far  in  advance 
of  our  text.  Let  us  therefore  return  to  "Last 
Year's  Nests" — 12mo,  cloth,  illustrated,  gilt  top, 
uncut  edges,  price  $1.50. 

The  first  edition  —  it  may  be  one  thousand 
copies  or  ten  thousand  —  has  been  delivered  to 
the  publisher  by  the  beaming  binder,  who  alone, 
in  some  in.stances,  knows  his  profit  on  them. 
"Last  Year's  Nests"  is  by  a  well-known  author, 
and  contains  some  elements  of  pojnilarity.  The 
literary  adviser  has  written  a  beautiful  and  schol- 
arly aj)preciation  of  it,  one  of  the  huly  stenogra- 
phers has  declared  it  grand,  and  the  salesman,  if 
he  is  given  to  reading  anything  beyond  the  title- 
page,  savs  it's  a  corker.  He  starts  out  with  it; 
along  with  u  trunkful  of  other  lK)oks,  to  be  sure, 
but  our  .syni|)athies  are  wholly  witli  the  "  Nests," 
and  it  is  only  its  career  that  we  shall  follow. 

He  may  be  one  of  a  force  of  salesmen,  each  of 
:',()r> 


THE   BUILDING  OF  A  BOOK 

whom  has  his  own  territory.  One  may  visit  only 
the  larger  cities,  Boston,  New  York,  Philadelphia, 
Pittsburg,  Chicago;  another  may  take  in  the 
smaller  towns  along  this  route;  another,  the 
Middle  West,  Southern  or  Southwestern  territory. 
Still  another,  the  cities  west  of  Chicago,  including 
those  on  the  Pacific  coast.  Houses  publishing 
competitive  lines  and  non-copyright  books  have 
other  methods  and  machinery  for  distribution.  I 
speak  only  for  the  copyright  salesman,  and  not 
to  be  too  prolix,  take  only  the  copyright  novel  as 
an  illustration  of  the  day's  work. 

The  salesman  arrives  at  a  town,  say  Chicago. 
He  goes  to  the  hotel,  orders  his  trunks  and  sample 
tables  sent  to  his  room.  The  tables  are  set  up  — 
well-worn  pine  boards  on  trestles  and  covered 
with  sheeting.  He  unpacks  his  trunk  and  arranges 
his  books  on  the  tables  as  effectively  as  his  artistic 
sense  permits.  Then  he  visits  his  customers  and 
makes  appointments  that  cover  a  full  week. 
Previous  to  his  arrival  his  office  had  informed  the 
booksellers  of  his  coming,  inclosing  a  catalogue. 
This  the  bookseller  handed  to  a  clerk  to  be  marked 
up.  The  clerk  had  gone  over  their  stock  of  this 
particular  pubHsher's  books  and  had  marked  op- 
posite each  title  in  the  catalogue  the  number  of 
copies  on  hand.  Armed  with  this  catalogue  the 
bookseller  keeps  his  appointment  at  the  room  of 
the  traveller.  [It  ought  to  be  mentioned  in  passing 
that  this  is  a  purely  hypothetical  case,  invented 
306 


THE  TRAVELLING  SALESMAN 

for  the  purposes  of  illustration.  The  clerk  who 
marks  up  the  catalogue  in  advance  of  the  sales- 
man's arrival  is  as  fictitious  as  the  bookseller  who 
keeps  his  appointment  promptly.  Perhaps  this 
delightful  uncertainty  is  another  of  the  many  in- 
fluences that  make  the  book  business,  from  the 
wTiting  of  the  manuscript  to  the  reading  of  the 
printed  book,  so  fascinating.] 

In  the  salesman's  room  the  customer  examines 
the  new  books,  asks  questions,  hears  arguments 
(many  of  them  fearfully  and  wonderfully  made), 
and  eventually,  after  nmch  debate,  gives  his  order. 
Having  ordered  all  the  new  books  that  he  wishes, 
he  goes  over  the  catalogue  and  gives  what  is  called 
his  stock  order;  that  is  to  say,  he  orders  the  books 
on  which  his  stock  is  low  but  for  which  there  is  still 
a  demand. 

Perhaps  the  salesman  has  reserved  for  his  final 
battle  the  .sale  of  "Last  Year's  Nasts."  As  prices 
cut  some  figure  in  this  argument,  we  are  driven,  for 
a  moment,  to  the  dry  bones  of  prices  and  dis- 
counts. 

Listed  in  the  publisher's  catalogue  at  §1.50,  the 
ordinary  discount  to  a  dealer  ordering  two  or 
tiiree  copies  is  thirty-three  and  one-third  per 
cent,  or  SI  .00  net,  the  book.seller  paying  trans- 
portation charges.  Competition,  however,  has 
increased  this  discount  to  forty  per  cent,  so  that 
we  shall  assume  that  in  .small  (juantitics  the  book 
can  be  had  at  S.90  net.  In  larger  quantities  extra 
:]()7 


THE   BUILDING  OF  A   BOOK 

discounts  are  given;  some  publishers  give  forty 
and  five  per  cent  on  fifty  copies  and  forty  and  ten 
per  cent  on  one  hundred  copies;  others  increase 
the  quantities  to  one  hundred  and  two  hundred 
and  fifty  copies  respectively  for  the  extra  discounts. 
But,  as  has  been  pointed  out,  the  growing  tendency 
is  not  to  overload  the  bookseller,  especially  in 
view  of  the  fact  that  it  is  the  publisher  who  loses 
when  the  bookseller  assigns. 

Assuming  that  the  "Last  Year's  Nests"  is  likely 
to  have  a  large  sale  and  that  the  salesman  wishes  to 
sell  Mr.  Bookseller  two  hundred  and  fifty  copies,  he 
quotes  the  extra  discount  of  forty  and  ten  per  cent 
on  that  quantity.  If  he  can  persuade  the  book- 
seller to  take  two  hundred  and  fifty  copies,  he  has 
not  only  swollen  his  sales  by  that  amount,  but  he 
has  forced  a  probable  retail  sale  of  that  quantity. 
For  once  on  the  bookseller's  tables,  the  very  size 
of  the  order  inspires  every  clerk  to  help  reduce  the 
pile,  not  to  mention  the  fact  that  the  books  are 
bought  and  must  be  paid  for.  Had  the  bookseller 
bought  five  copies,  extra  efforts  toward  sales  would 
not  be  forthcoming;  the  energy  would  be  applied 
to  another  novel.  Hence  the  salesman's  efforts  to 
effect  a  large  sale. 

There  is  another  reason  for  this  extra  quantity. 
Two  hundred  and  fifty  copies  of  "Last  Year's  Nests," 
piled  in  a  pyramid,  is  a  gentle  reminder  to  the 
bookseller's  customers  that  it  is  a  mighty  impor- 
tant book.  Such  an  argument  is  often  more  potent 
808 


THE  TRAVELLING  SALESMAN 

than  the  disagreeing  opinions  of  critics.  Here  is  a 
case  in  point. 

A  noveUst  wTote  an  altogether  charming  and 
spirited  novel.  The  reviewers  spoke  well  of  it, 
but  the  sale  of  the  book  hung  fire.  It  was  the  dull 
season,  —  ^Lay  or  June,  —and  there  was  no  other 
novel  of  any  worth  in  the  public  mind.  The 
salesman  said  to  his  employer :  "  Here's  a  book 
that  has  a  good  chance  for  success.  If  you'll  back 
me  with  some  good  advertising,  I'll  guarantee  to 
make  that  novel  sell." 

The  publisher  replied:  "Go  ahead,  my  son; 
I'll  take  a  gamble  on  it."  (They  really  talk  that 
way  when  they  travel  mufti.)  So  the  salesman 
induced  the  New  York  wholesalers  to  erect  a 
pyramid  of  a  thousand  copies  in  their  respective 
stores,  guaranteeing  to  take  back  the  books  if 
they  were  not  sold.  Tliis  was  done  for  the  purpose 
of  impressing  the  buyers  for  country  stores  who 
were  flocking  into  Now  York  for  their  fall  purchases. 

Next  the  retail  booksellers  were  asked  to  take, 
on  the  same  terms,  from  one  hundred  to  two 
hundrerl  and  fifty  copies  and  pile  them  conspicu- 
ously in  their  stores.  As  trade  was  dull  and  there 
was  no  one  big  seller  clamoring  for  public  recogni- 
tion at  the  time,  the  doalcrs  wore  willing  to  assist 
in  the  work  of  encouraging  good  literature. 

Then  an  advertising  campaign  was  planned. 
Critics  there  were  a-plenty  who  wagged  a  sad  head 
because  the  advertising  was  imdignified.  \Vliat 
309 


THE   BUILDING  OF  A  BOOK 

they  meant  was  that  it  was  unconventional,  was 
without  the  dignity  of  tradition  to  give  it  its  hall- 
mark. It  had,  at  least,  the  novelty  of  originality, 
and  answered  the  final  test  of  good  advertising  in 
that  it  attracted  attention.  Then  the  sale  began, 
and  as  soon  as  New  York  City  was  reporting  it 
among  the  list  of  the  six  best  sellers,  the  salesman 
took  to  the  road  to  carry  on  the  campaign.  The 
result  was  eventually  a  sale  reaching  six  figures. 

But  to  get  back  to  "  Last  Year's  Nests."  It  is  to 
be  published  June  1.  A  few  sample  pages  only 
have  been  printed,  but  blank  paper  fills  out  to  the 
bulk  of  the  book  as  it  will  be.  Illustrations  —  if 
they  are  ready —  are  inserted,  the  title-page  printed, 
and  the  whole  is  bound  up  in  a  sample  cover. 
This  is  technically  known  as  a  dummy,  and  serves 
to  show  the  prospective  buyer  merely  the  outward 
and  visible  sign  of  an  inward  and  spiritual  appeal 
to  public  favor.  For  the  purpose  of  informing 
the  bookseller  it  is  worth  but  little  more  than  the 
printed  title  or  a  catalogue  announcement.  For 
all  $1.50  novels  look  alike,  are  printed  on  pretty 
nmch  the  same  kind  of  paper,  and  bear  covers 
differing  more  in  degree  than  kind.  Yet  the  book- 
seller likes  to  handle  something  tangible  when  he 
is  making  up  his  order,  and  the  salesman,  with  even 
a  dummy  in  his  hand,  finds  that  there  is  less  wear 
and  tear  upon  his  imagination. 

Were  he  selling  shoes,  the  salesman  would,  as  a 
matter  of  course,  point  out  the  superior  ciuality 
310 


THE  TRA\"ELLING  SALESMAN 

of  the  goods,  lay  stress  on  their  style  and  durabil- 
ity, and  as  a  clincher,  present  the  incontrovertible 
argument  of  low  price.  On  no  such  brief  can  the 
book  salesman  rest  his  case.  "  Last  Year's  Nests" 
varies  in  no  respect  mechanically  from  any  of  its 
12 mo  competitors;  and  if  it  did,  it  would  make 
no  difference.  "Look  at  the  design  of  the  cover, 
see  how  durable  it  is,"  argues  the  salesman. 
"  What  a  charming  title-page,  and  note  the  classic 
proportion  of  the  printed  page  to  the  margin,"  he 
continues.  The  startled  customer,  listening  to 
such  an  argument,  would  be  inclined  to  humor  the 
salesman  until  he  could  safely  get  him  into  the 
hands  of  an  alienist. 

Two  arguments  and  two  only  comprise  the  sales- 
man's stock  in  trade;  if  he  can  say  that  "Last 
Year's  Nests"  is  by  the  well-known  author  whose 
name  is  a  household  word  and  whose  previous 
book  sold  so  many  thousand  copies,  he  has  the 
bookseller  on  the  mourner's  bench;  if  he  can  (and 
he  frequently  does)  add  the  clinching  argument 
that  his  firm  will  advertise  the  book  heavily,  he 
can  leave  tlie  bookseller  with  that  thrill  of  triumph 
we  all  feel  when  we  bend  ancjther's  will  to  our  own. 

A  young  and  inexperienced  salesman,  whom  we 
shall  call  .Mr.  Green,  was  making  his  Western  trij). 
As  he  was  waiting  in  a  bookseller's  store  for  his 
customer's  attention,  tliere  entered  a  traveller  of 
ripe  years  and  experience,  representing  one  of  the 
larger  publishing  firms.  Naturally  the  bookseller 
311 


THE   BUILDING   OF  A   BOOK 

gave  the  older  salesman  his  instant  attention. 
With  no  desire  to  eavesdrop,  Mr.  Green  could  not 
avoid  overhearing  the  conversation. 

*'  Hello,  Blank !     Anything  new  ?  " 

"Yes,  I  have  a  big  novel  here  by  a  big  man.  It 
will  have  a  big  sale,"  and  Blank  mentioned  the 
title  and  author. 

At  this  point,  Green  pricked  up  his  ears.  He  had 
read  the  novel  in  manuscript  form  and  his  immedi- 
ate thought  was,  "  Here's  where  I  learn  something 
about  the  gentle  art  of  making  sales." 

Mr.  Blank  proceeded  so  tell  what  he  knew  about 
the  book.  His  synopsis  was  so  inaccurate  that 
Green  knew  that  he  had  not  read  the  book,  but  was 
glibly  misquoting  the  publisher's  announcement. 
Green's  courage  was  fired  as  he  reflected  how 
much  better  be  could  have  portrayed  the  chief 
incidents  of  the  plot.  But  his  triumph  was  momen- 
tary. Blank  ended  his  argument  in  a  voice  that 
left  no  doubt  of  his  own  faith  in  the  effectiveness 
of  his  logic.  "  And  the  firm  is  going  to  advertise  it 
like ." 

"Send  me  two  hundred  and  fifty  copies,"  said 
the  customer. 

The  longer  Mr.  Green  travelled  the  more  con- 
vinced he  became  that  the  old  salesman  knew  his 
business.  The  argument  of  advertising  carries 
with  it  a  certain  persuasiveness  that  the  customer 
cannot  resist.  Not  always  does  a  liberal  use  of 
printer's  ink  land  a  book  among  the  six  best  sellers; 
312 


THE  TRAVELLING  SALESMAN 

but  it  does  it  so  often  that  the  rule  is  proved  by 
the  exception.  A  publisher  once  made  the  state- 
ment, in  the  presence  of  a  number  of  men  interested 
in  the  book-publishing  business,  that,  by  advertis- 
ing, he  could  sell  twenty  thousand  copies  of  any 
book,  no  matter  how  bad  it  was.  The  silence  of 
the  others  indicated  assent  to  the  doctrine.  But 
one  incjuiring  mind  broke  in  with  the  question, 
"But  can  you  make  a  profit  on  it?" 

"Ah  !  That  is  another  question,"  answered  the 
publisher. 

And  the  ledgers  of  several  publishers  will  show 
a  loss,  due  to  excessive  advertising,  on  books  that 
loom  large  in  public  favor.  The  author  has  reaped 
good  royalties  and  the  salesman  has  had  no  great 
draft  made  upon  his  stock  of  persuasive  argument. 

It  is  under  such  circumstances  that  the  traveller 
finds  his  work  easy  and  liis  burden  light.  An- 
other condition  under  which  he  meets  with  less 
resistance  is  in  the  instance  of  a  second  book  by 
an  author  whose  first  Ixjok  has  met  with  success. 
The  bookseller  is  a  wary,  cautious  man;  what 
illusions  ho  onco  had  have  gone  down  the  corridors 
of  time  along  witii  the  many  books  tiiat  liavc  not 
helped  him.  For  reasons  that  are  not  so  inscru- 
table as  tlicy  may  seem  to  the  enthusiastic  sjlIos- 
man,  tlie  bookseller  is  (HsincHnod  to  order  more 
than  a  few  copies  of  a  first  book  by  a  new  antlior. 
Perhaps  the  traveller  has  read  the  book  and  is 
surcharged  with  enthusiasm;  he  talks  eloquently 
313 


THE   BUILDING  OF  A  BOOK 

and  ably  in  the  book's  behalf;  he  masses  argument 
upon  argument  —  and  in  the  end  makes  about  as 
much  impression  as  he  would  by  shooting  putty 
balls  at  the  Sphinx.  Even  though  the  salesman's 
enthusiasm  may  find  its  justification  in  the  re- 
viewer's opinions  and  the  beginning  of  a  brisk 
sale  for  the  book  all  over  the  country,  still  the  re- 
luctant bookseller  broods  moodily  over  the  past 
and  refuses  to  be  stung  again.  But  let  the  book 
have  a  large  sale  and  then  let  the  salesman  start 
out  with  a  second  book  by  this  author :  the  book- 
seller, with  few  exceptions,  will  go  the  limit  on 
quantity.  Unfortunately,  it  frequently  happens 
that  the  public  —  which  is  a  discriminating  public 
or  not,  as  you  chance  to  look  at  it  —  does  not 
seem  possessed  of  the  same  blind  confidence,  and 
the  result  is  a  monument  of  unsold  copies. 

The  trade,  I  think,  is  coming  more  and  more  to 
be  guided  by  the  advice  of  such  salesmen  as  have 
proved  to  be  the  possessors  of  judgment  and 
honesty.  By  judgment  is  meant  not  merely  the 
opinion  that  one  forms  of  the  literary  value  of  a 
book,  but  that  commercial  estimate  that  a  good 
salesman  is  able  to  make.  The  literary  adviser 
can  state  in  terms  of  literary  criticism  the  reasons 
why  the  Ms.  is  worthy  of  pubhcation;  but  the 
traveller,  if  he  happens  to  be  more  than  a  mere 
pedler,  can,  after  reading  the  Ms.,  take  pencil  and 
paper  and  figure  out  how  many  copies  he  can  place. 
Publishers  are  growing  to  appreciate  this  quality 
314 


THE   TRAVELLING  SALESMAN 

in  a  salesman  antl  are  seeking  his  advice  before 
accepting  a  Ms.  Some  go  further  and  ask  his 
assistance  in  the  make-up  of  a  book;  for  a  good 
cover  covers  a  multitude  of  sins. 

In  former  years  it  was  considered  the  salesman's 
first  duty  to  "load"  the  customer;  that  is,  sell 
him  all  he  could,  regardless  of  the  merits  of  the 
books.  In  those  days  a  denial  of  the  good  old 
doctrine  that  the  miprint  could  do  no  wrong  was 
rank  heresy.  Such  salesmen  are  no  longer  cate- 
goried  with  Caesar's  wife,  and  the  new  salesmanship 
is  having  its  day.  Its  members  are  men  of  reading 
and  intelligence,  who  have  taken  the  trouble  to 
learn  something  about  the  wares  they  are  selling, 
and  who  have  found  that  it  pays  to  be  honest. 
It  doesn't  seem  to  pay  the  first  year;  but  if  the 
salesman's  judgment  of  books  is  discriminating 
and  he  hangs  on,  the  booksellers  soon  realize  that 
they  can  trust  him.  As  they  know  little  of  the 
new  books  he  is  offering,  they  are  inclined  to  be 
guided  by  iiis  advice;  should  they  find  that  this 
pays,  they  will  repose  more  coiilidciicc  in  him.  A 
traveller  who,  in  lieu  of  j)orsonal  im;igiii;ition  and 
the  power  of  persuasion,  was  forced  to  dcju'nd  ujion 
hard  work  and  the  common,  or  garden,  kind  of 
honesty  for  what  success  he  had  on  the  road,  was 
giving  up  his  work  to  take  an  indoor  |)osition.  On 
his  final  trip  he  had  a  "first"  book  by  a  "  first" 
author;  it  was  an  imusual  book  and  had  in  it 
possibilities  of  a  really  great  sale.  Tlie  firm  pub- 
:il5 


THE   BUILDING   OF  A  BOOK 

lishiug  the  book  was  in  the  hands  of  an  assignee. 
The  outlook  was  not  propitious  for  a  large  sale: 
a  new  book  by  an  unknown  author  published 
by  an  assignee.  But  the  salesman  believed  in  the 
book,  believed  in  it  with  judgment  and  enthusi- 
asm. "1  found,"  he  said,  in  telling  the  story, 
"that  the  trade  to  a  man  believed  in  me.  It 
affected  me  deeply  to  feel  that  my  years  of  straight 
dealing  had  not  been  wasted.  The  booksellers 
backed  me  up,  bought  all  the  copies  I  asked  them 
to  buy, — and  I  asked  largely, — with  the  result 
that  I  sold  ten  thousand  copies  in  advance  of  pub- 
lication. The  firm  has  sold  since  over  two  hun- 
dred thousand  copies  of  that  book  and  its  creditors 
received  a  hundred  cents  on  the  dollar." 

It  would  seem  an  axiom  that  a  man  selling 
books  should  have  at  least  a  bowing  acquaintance 
with  their  contents,  yet  I  have  heard  salesmen  argue 
hotly  in  favor  of  the  old-time  salesman  who  sold 
books  as  he  would  sell  shoes  or  hats.  Such  a  one 
was  selling  a  novel  to  a  Boston  bookseller.  He  had 
not  taken  the  trouble  to  read  the  book,  but  had 
been  told  by  his  firm  that  it  was  a  good  story. 
Flushed  with  the  vehemence  of  his  own  argument 
for  a  large  order,  he  floundered  about  among  such 
vague  statements  as :  "  You  can't  go  to  sleep  until 
you  have  finished  it !  It's  great !  A  corking 
story !  Can't  lay  the  book  down !  Unable  to 
turn  out  the  light  until  you  have  read  the  last 
line!" 

316 


THE   TRAVELLING  SALESMAN 

" But  what's  it  about?"  quickly  interrupted  the 
customer,  suspecting  that  the  traveller  had  not 
read  the  book. 

"  It's  about  —  it's  about  a  dollar  and  a  quarter," 
was  the  quick  retort. 

Perhaps  here  we  find  the  substitute  for  the  read- 
ing that  maketh  a  full  man.  Repartee  of  this 
sort  is  disarming,  and  the  quickness  of  wit  that 
prompts  it  is  not  one  of  the  least  useful  attributes 
of  salesmanship.  To  carry  the  moral  a  step 
farther,  it  is  only  fair  to  say  that  the  nimble  sales- 
man has  had  the  wit  to  get  out  of  the  publishing 
business  into  another  line  of  industry  that,  if  re- 
ports are  to  be  believed,  has  made  him  independent. 

The  commercial  traveller  who  sells  books  has  no 
fault  to  find  with  the  people  with  whom  he  deals. 
By  the  very  nature  of  his  calling  the  bookseller  is 
a  man  of  reading  and  culture ;  now  and  then  among 
them  you  find  a  man  of  rare  culture.  So  genuinely 
friendly  are  the  relations  existing  between  seller 
and  purchaser  that  a  travelling  man  has  the  feeling 
that  he  is  making  a  pleasure  trip  among  friends. 
Such  relations  are  no  mean  asset  to  the  salesman, 
although  they  are  not  wholly  essential.  For  it  is 
to  the  book.seller's  interest  at  least  to  examine  the 
samples  of  every  i)ublisher's  representative.  It  is 
not  a  question  of  laying  in  the  winter's  suj)ply  of 
coal,  or  of  being  content  with  one  good  old  standby 
line  of  kitfhen  ranges.  It  is  books  that  he  is  deal- 
ing in;  an  article  that  knows  no  competition  and 
317 


THE   BUILDING  OF  A  BOOK 

that  has  a  brief  career.  Should  my  lady  ask  for 
Mark  Twain's  last  book,  it  would  be  a  poor  book- 
seller who  answered,  "We  don't  sell  it,  but  we 
have  a  large  pile  of  Marie  Corelli's  latest."  Or 
should  the  customer  desire  a  copy  of  Henry  James's 
recent  volume,  what  would  it  profit  the  bookseller 
to  inform  her  that  he  did  not  have  it  in  stock,  but 
he  had  something  just  as  good  ? 

It  is  because  of  the  immense  numbers  of  titles 
the  bookseller  must  carry  that  the  salesman  always 
finds  him  a  willing  listener.  And  in  the  end,  even 
though  he  does  not  buy  heavily,  he  must  order  at 
least  a  few  each  of  the  salable  books.  Such  com- 
placency on  the  part  of  the  bookseller  might  argue 
for  direct  dealing  on  the  part  of  the  publisher  by 
means  of  circulars  and  letters,  thus  saving  the  ex- 
pense of  a  traveller.  But  firms  that  have  tried 
this  have  had  a  change  of  heart  and  have  quickly 
availed  themselves  of  the  traveller's  services. 

He  is  useful  in  ways  other  than  selling.  If  he 
is  keen  to  advance  his  firm's  interests,  —  and  most 
of  the  book  travellers  are,  —  he  will  interest  the 
bookseller's  clerks  in  the  principal  books  of  his 
line.  He  will  send  them  a  copy  of  an  important 
book,  knowing  that  the  clerk,  should  he  become 
interested  in  the  book,  will  personally  sell  many 
copies. 

In  the  matter  of  credits,  the  travelling  man  is  of 
considerable  service  to  his  house.  He  is  on  the 
spot,  can  size  up  the  bookseller's  trade,  note  if  he 
318 


THE  TRAVELLING  SALESMAN 

is  overstocked,  particularly  with  unsalable  books, 
or  ''plugs,"  as  the)-  are  called,  obtain  the  gossip  of 
the  town,  and  in  many  ways  can  form  an  estimate 
of  the  bookseller's  financial  contlition  that  is  more 
trustworthy  than  any  the  credit  man  in  the  home 
office  can  get.  There  were  a  dozen  publishers' 
representatives  who  once  sat  in  solemn  conclave 
discussing  the  financial  responsibility  of  an  im- 
portant customer.  He  was  suspected  of  being 
beyond  his  depth,  and  some  of  the  travellers  had 
been  warnerl  not  to  sell  him.  Several  personally 
inspected  his  business,  obtained  a  report  from  him 
and  his  bank,  and  threshed  out  the  matter  as 
solemnly  and  seriously  as  if  they  were  the  inter- 
ested publishers  whom  they  represented.  It  was 
decided  to  extend  further  credit  to  the  bookseller; 
his  orders  were  taken  and  sent  in  with  full  ex- 
planations. How  many  orders  were  rejected  by 
the  publishers  I  do  not,  of  course,  know.  But  the 
judgment  of  the  travellers,  as  events  proved,  was 
justified. 

The  publisher  is  learning  to  regard  his  travelling 
man  as  more  than  a  salesman.  He  is  asking  him, 
now  and  then,  to  assist  him  in  the  select  inn  of  a 
manuscript,  to  aid  him  in  j)lanning  the  letter-press, 
and  binding  of  a  book.  For  by  the  very  nature  of 
his  work  the  traveller  is  the  one  man  in  the  pub- 
lisher's employ  who  has  a  comprehensive  grasp  of 
the  many  brandies  of  this  alluring,  but  not  very 
profitable,  business. 

:{19 


SELLING  AT  WHOLESALE 

By  Joseph  E.  Bray 

In  the  process  of  manufacture  a  book  passes 
through  so  many  hands  that  if  the  finished  product 
is  exactly  in  accordance  with  the  plan  that  existed 
in  the  mind  of  its  designer,  he  is  justified  in  looking 
upon  it  with  the  satisfaction  felt  by  an  artist  who 
has  worked  well.     After  a  book  is  issued,  however, 
it  is  quite  another  and  equally  important  a  matter 
to  sell  it,  and  this  part  of  book  publication  requires 
as  much  thought  and  perhaps  more  dogged  per- 
sistence than  the  other.     There  are  some  books, 
such  as  *'Ben   Hur"   and  "David  Harum,"   for 
instance,  that  make  a  market  for  themselves,  and 
the  demand  for  such  successes,  though  starting 
perhaps  in  a  rather  circumscribed  locaUty,  moves 
onward  and  outward,  gathering  force  all  the  time 
like  an  avalanche.      These  are  rare  exceptions, 
however,  and  for  most  books  a  market  must  be 
created.     No  matter  how  good  the  book,  it  is  not 
enough  to  view  the  finished  product  with  satisfac- 
tion and  expect  that  the  public  will  buy  it  in  the 
proportion  that  it  deserves.    It  has  to  be  marketed 
like  any  other  article  of  commerce;  and  a  book  is 
320 


SELLING   AT  WHOLESALE 

only  on  the  market  properly  when  you  find  its 
selling  points  known  to  the  trade,  and  the  volume 
itself  temptingly  v^lisplayed  on  the  counters  in  the 
bookstores  every^vhcre,  ready  to  become  the  prop- 
erty of  any  one  who  may  be  attracted  by  a  re- 
viewer's description,  a  clever  advertisement,  the 
polite  recommendation  of  a  well-posted  clerk,  or 
any  other  of  the  many  reasons  that  intluce  people 
to  buy  books.  Tliis  condition  of  course  obtains  in 
all  large  cities  on  or  soon  after  the  day  of  publica- 
tion of  a  well-managed  book  —  but  urban  publicity 
is  not  suflicicnt.  The  whole  country  nuist  be 
taken  care  of,  and  the  several  thousand  booksellers 
scattered  over  this  great  land  nmst  be  placed  in 
the  same  relative  position  as  their  brethren  in  the 
large  cities.  How  they  are  supplied  with  the  book, 
posted  as  to  its  merits,  and  enabled  to  take  care 
of  whatever  demands  arise,  is  the  wholesale,  or 
"jobbing,"  side  of  book  selling. 

This  class  of  booksellers  relies  mostly  upon  the 
wholesaler  for  information  and  suj)plies.  livery- 
one  knows  when  Winston  Churchill  and  Mrs. 
Humphry  Ward  are  writing  books,  and  what  they 
are  about;  but  when  a  dealer  in  a  small  town  gets  a 
call  for  "Tlie  Sands  of  Time,"  author  unknown, 
a  book  he  hafi  never  heard  of  before,  he  usually 
transmits  the  order  just  as  he  has  received  it  to 
his  jobber,  who  supplies  him  with  the  book  if  it 
is  on  the  market,  or  with  the  necessary  information 
regarding  it  if  he  is  not  able  to  supply  it.  The 
321 


THE  BUILDING  OF  A  BOOK 

jobber's  work,  broadly  speaking,  is  twofold :  To 
see  that  a  book  for  which  the  demand  is  certain  to 
be  large  and  immediate  is  in  the  hands  of  all  his 
customers  promptly  after  pubUcation,  and  to  take 
care  of  all  inquiries  that  arise  throughout  the 
country  for  lesser-known  books.  His  establishment 
must  be  a  very  temple  of  learning,  and  he  has  to 
know  everything  in  the  book  world,  from  the  plot 
of  the  latest  "best  seller"  to  the  relative  im- 
portance of  a  work  on  the  differential  calculus. 

Let  us  take  his  first  duty.  A  book  is  to  be  pub- 
lished by  a  noted  author,  and  a  large  sale  is  confi- 
dently expected.  It  will  be  widely  advertised, 
and  the  press  will  feature  it  in  the  review  columns. 
His  first  move  usually  is  to  distribute  descriptive 
notices  among  his  customers,  telUng  them  what  he 
knows  about  it  and  inviting  them  to  send  in  their 
orders.  His  travellers  are  also  notified  and  are 
advised  as  to  how  the  book  is  likely  to  be  received 
by  the  people,  and  whether  it  is  accounted  better 
or  worse  than  the  author's  previous  works.  The 
jobber  has  therefore  to  size  up  a  book  early  in  the 
game,  without  perhaps  having  seen  anything  re- 
lating to  it  except  the  publisher's  advance  notices. 
He  has  to  be  very  careful  not  to  "over-sell"  the 
book,  and  yet  at  the  same  time  he  must  distribute  it 
in  sufficient  quantities,  so  that  no  sales  may  be  lost 
through  dealers  not  having  supplies.  Orders 
generally  begin  to  come  in  quickly,  and  sometimes 
the  advance  sales  of  popular  books  are  enormous. 
322 


SELLING   AT   WHOLESALE 

Then  comes  the  question  of  buying  a  first  supply. 
The  suave,  persuasive  agent  of  the  pubUsher  waits 
upon  the  jobber  and  tells  him  what  a  wonderful 
work  it  is,  that  the  demand  is  without  a  doubt 
going  to  beat  all  records,  and  he  had  "better  hurry 
up  and  place  a  large  order  before  the  first  edition 
is  exhausted,"  and  all  that  kind  of  thing.  The 
jobber  takes  into  consideration  the  facts  he  has 
been  able  to  learn  concerning  the  book,  and  places 
an  order  accordingly.  Then  his  own  travellers 
are  supplied  with  dmnmies  or  advance  copies, 
and  the  work  of  arousing  an  interest  in  the  book 
in  all  sections  of  the  country  proceeds  actively. 
Not  only  are  all  the  towns  canvassed  thoroughly, 
but  even  the  smaller  villages  are  visited  or  the 
modest  orders  solicited  l)y  mail,  though  the  stocks 
of  the  local  booksellers  may  embrace  only  a  few 
of  the  best  sellers. 

It  is  generally  arranged  so  that  the  stock  of  (he 
book  of  the  kind  to  which  we  have  alhidcd  is 
delivered  to  the  jobber  on  or  l)cfore  the  day  of 
publication,  and  he  in  turn  tries  to  place  it  in  the 
liands  of  his  customers  early,  usually  on  or  within 
a  day  or  two  of  the  date  of  i.ssuo.  From  Maine  to 
California,  and  from  the  northern  bmmdary  to  the 
Gulf,  there  is  no  town  of  importuucc,  and  no  village 
where  a  bookstore  exi.sts,  that  has  not  coijics  of,  or 
information  concerning,  the  book  within  a  short 
time  of  its  coming  from  the  press.  After  this 
is  done,  patience  is  necessary  and  a  period  of 
323 


THE  BUILDING  OF  A  BOOK 

comparative  inactivity  ensues.  Tlie  book  is  before 
the  people,  and  it  is  necessary  to  wait  for  their 
verdict.  There  are  many  ways  of  "puffing"  a 
book.  Clever  advertising  will  do  much.  Window 
displays  and  all  the  other  arts  resorted  to  by  book- 
seller and  publisher  sell  copies;  but  unless  the  people 
take  to  it,  unless  it  appeals  to  them,  unless  they 
talk  about  it,  and  pass  it  along,  none  of  these  ways 
will  do  more  than  give  a  book  a  very  temporary 
period  of  demand.  The  wisest  publisher  sometimes 
issues  books  that  never  reach  a  second  edition. 
They  awaken  no  responsive  echo  in  the  hearts  of 
the  people,  the  stamp  of  public  approval  is  not 
put  upon  them,  and  although  hailed  with  a  flourish 
of  trumpets  and  a  blast  of  advertising,  they  die  an 
early  death,  the  author  and  the  pubUsher  perhaps 
being  the  only  people  that  regret  their  demise. 

In  the  case  of  a  work  that  does  meet  with  public 
approval,  this  approval  is  soon  shown,  and  it  is 
not  a  hard  matter  to  care  for  the  demand.  The 
wholesaler  aims  to  keep  a  stock  on  hand  suffi- 
ciently large  to  cover  all  calls  upon  him,  and  does 
what  he  can  to  push  the  good  thing  along,  through 
his  salesmen  and  the  circular  literature  which  he 
sends  out  from  time  to  time. 

There  are  other  classes  of  books,  however,  in 
which  the  wholesaler  must  interest  himself  and 
which  cannot  be  treated  so  easily;  here  perhaps 
his  service  to  the  community  and  the  publishing 
field  are  the  greatest.  Only  the  select  few  among 
324 


SELLING   AT  WHOLESALE 

books  are  big  sellers;  the  majority  do  not  sell 
largely,  and  only  a  very  small  percentage  of  the 
many  thousands  of  books  put  forth  annually  make 
a  stir  in  the  world.  A  novel  by  an  unknown 
author,  a  biography  of  an  eminent  man,  a  modest 
work  of  travel  or  adventure,  technical  books  and 
those  that  add  to  the  world's  knowledge,  cannot 
be  given  a  wide  tlistribution  or  an  inviting  display 
on  the  shelves  of  the  trade.  The  smaller  bookseller 
cannot  afford  to  carry  them.  His  profits  are  small 
and  his  investments  in  books  of  thi.s  class  have  to 
be  very  carefully  considered.  His  margin  of  profit 
is  too  small  for  him  to  take  more  chances  than  he 
has  to,  and  consequently  he  relies  largely  upon  his 
jobber,  from  whom  he  in  most  cases  picks  up  these 
books  as  he  needs  them.  The  wholesaler  has  to 
be  a  bureau  of  information  concerning  this  part 
of  his  bu.siness.  His  mail  brings  him  in  all  sorts 
of  inquiries  for  l)Ooks  that  have  been  out  of  print 
for  years.  Somebody  wants  (hem,  can  they  be 
obtained  l)y  advertising  for  them  or  otherwise? 
The  jobber  must  know  this  and  give  the  informa- 
tion to  his  customer  prom})tly.  Books  not  yet 
published.  When  will  they  be  issued?  What  will 
be  the  cost?  An  approximate  price  must  be 
given.  What  are  the  best  books  on  certain  subjects, 
and  how  do  they  compare  with  other  works  in  the 
same  field  ?  Hundreds  of  inquiries  similar  to  these 
are  constantly  received.  Sometimes  titles  are 
garbled  and  twisted  all  out  of  shape,  taken  down 
325 


THE   BUILDING  OF  A  BOOK 

perhaps  by  the  rural  bookseller  phonetically  and 
confidently  forwarded  to  the  wholesaler,  who  will 
certainly  know.  The  right  book  is  usually  sent, 
and  not  often  is  the  jobber  found  to  be  at  fault. 
Curiously  enough,  the  majority  of  people  are  very 
careless  in  regard  to  titles  of  books,  and  many  co- 
nundrums of  this  kind  are  daily  solved  by  the  trade. 

PecuHar  in  many  ways  is  the  book  trade,  and  the 
ordinary  laws  of  commerciahsm  do  not  always 
apply  to  the  book  business.  Tlie  book  market 
is  fickle  to  the  utmost  degree.  The  books  that 
should  sell  sometimes  do  not  "move"  at  all,  and 
those  that  apparently  have  but  little  to  recom- 
mend them  turn  out  to  be  the  best  of  the  bunch 
so  far  as  sales  are  concerned.  A  jobber  has  to  be 
something  of  an  optimist;  he  must  keep  his  ear 
to  the  ground,  and,  like  certain  types  of  politi- 
cians, must  be  prepared  to  give  the  people  what 
they  want  when  they  want  it.  He  can  of  course 
help  along  the  demand  for  good  books  and  check 
that  for  poor  literature,  and,  to  his  credit,  he 
usually  does  this,  but  the  book-buying  public  is 
truly  democratic  and  in  the  main  people  are 
pretty  definite  in  their  wants.  Oftentimes  they 
can  be  led,  but  it  is  rarely  that  they  will  consent 
to  be  driven. 

Another  important  part  of  the  jobber's  business 

is  the  supplying  of  public  libraries  and  similar 

institutions.     Here  his  knowledge  of  books  and  the 

resources  of  his  establisliment  are  put  to  the  sever- 

326 


SELLING   AT  WHOLESALE 

est  test.  Libraries  use  a  vast  quantity  of  bookt.. 
and  the  demand  from  this  source  is  extremely 
varied  in  character.  Librarians  are  also  very 
shrewd  and  careful  buyers,  and  much  work  in  the 
way  of  pricing  of  lists,  answering  inquiries,  etc., 
is  demanded.  Margins  of  profit  here  are  very 
small,  but  there  is  practically  no  loss  in  the  matter 
of  accounts,  and  a  hbrarian  is  very  satisfactory  to 
deal  with,  as  he  usually  knows  what  he  wants. 
The  popular  novel  has  been  pushed  so  much  to  the 
front  of  late  years  and  advertised  on  such  a  colossal 
scale,  that  one  not  versed  in  the  reading  demands 
of  the  people  miglit  very  well  think  America  was 
reading  nothing  else.  In  the  orders  sent  in  by 
public  libraries,  however,  "solid  reading"  is  very 
largely  represented,  and,  as  a  matter  of  fact,  that 
class  of  literature  is  making  just  as  great  an  increase 
in  public  demand  as  the  lighter  kind. 

The  wholesaler  therefore  is  a  u.'^eful  member  of  the 
book  world  and  an  important  factor  in  the  distri- 
bution of  books.  He  nuist  combine  the  acumen 
of  the  business  man  with  a  taste  for  literature  for 
literature's  sake,  have  an  enormous  capacity  for 
detail  but  be  capable  of  gra.'^ping  an  opportunity, 
possess  the  wisdom  of  Solomon,  the  jiatiencc  of 
Job,  and  the  tact  of  a  diplonuit.  He  must  be,  in 
short,  a  bu.sincss  nuui,  a  scholar,  and  a  philosopher; 
and  even  with  all  the.sc  accompli.shments  he  is  not 
likely  to  criflaiiger  the  peace  of  the  community 
by  accumulating  an  enormous  fortune. 
:i27 


SELLING   AT  RETAIL 
By  Warren  Sntder 

It  is  with  the  finished  product  of  author  and 
publisher  that  the  bookseller  has  chiefly  to  do.  In 
the  building  of  a  book  he  does  not  come  into  con- 
tact with  author,  artist,  compositor,  printer,  or 
publisher.  If  he  be  in  a  position  to  place  large 
orders,  his  opinion  is  occasionally  sought  as  to 
the  advisability  of  bringing  out  a  new  edition  of 
some  book  or  books  for  which  there  seems  to  be 
a  demand.  A  book  may  have  reached  an  un- 
usually large  sale  in  an  ordinary  edition;  he  is 
asked  if  he  thinks  a  finer  and  more  expensive 
edition  would  be  warrantable.  He  is,  however, 
chary  in  most  cases  about  expressing  an  opinion ; 
and  he  never  allows  himself  to  become  enthusiastic 
over  any  book  in  the  presence  of  a  publisher  or 
a  pubhsher's  representative.  For  he  feels  that 
if  he  should  display  any  eagerness,  he  would,  in 
a  measure,  commit  himself  to  placing  a  large  order 
for  that  particular  book. 

With  books  being  brought  out  at  the  rate  they 

have  been  for  the  last  five  years,  the  bookseller 

finds  himself  with  little  time  or  inclination  either 

to  read  or  to  think  about  the  things  to  come.     He 

328 


SELLING  AT  RETAIL 

has  enough  to  occupy  his  attention  in  his  efforts 
to  display  and  sell  the  books  he  already  has  on 
hand.  Witness  the  pyramids  of  volumes  tower- 
ing ceiling\vard  —  many  of  them  books  that  have 
been  there  for  several  moons  at  least;  and  which 
are  likely  to  remain  there  until  many  more  moons 
have  waxed  and  waned. 

I  often  wonder  if  the  bookseller  of  fifty  years 
ago  ever  dreamed  of  what  his  successor  woukl  have 
to  contend  with  in  the  way  of  new  pubhcations. 
I  recall  a  conversation  I  had  two  or  three  years 
ago  with  a  man  more  than  seventy  years  of  age. 
He  had  started  out  in  his  business  hfe  as  a  clerk 
in  a  bookstore  and  he  said  to  me,  "There  are  no 
booksellers  to-day  like  there  were  when  I  was  in 
the  book  business.  Then,"  he  continued,  "a  book- 
seller was  thoroughly  posted  as  to  the  contents  of 
the  books  he  had  for  sale;  while  now  they  know 
but  Httle  more  about  a  book  than  its  title."  I 
asked  him  if  he  ever  stopped  to  compare  the  con- 
ditions under  which  the  bookseller  of  past  days 
worked  with  tho.sc  under  which  the  bookseller  of 
to-day  had  to  labor.  I  have  read  that  in  LS55 
there  were  but  five  hundred  new  books  issued  in 
the  United  States.  In  1005  —  fifty  years  later  — 
there  were  seventy-five  hundred  new  books  laimrhed 
on  the  market.  This  did  not  include  some  six  hun- 
dred reprints. 

When  there  was  an  average  of  less  than  ten  new 
books  published  in  a  week,  it  was  an  easy  task  for 
:i29 


THE  BUILDING   OF  A   BOOK 

an  intelligent  salesperson  to  get  a  fair  knowledge 
of  the  contents  of  every  one.  But  when  books 
are  ground  out  at  the  rate  of  one  hundred  and 
fifty  a  week,  —  twenty-five  a  day,  —  the  task 
becomes  an  impossible  one.  Yet  I  have  fre- 
quently been  asked  by  seemingly  intelhgent  per- 
sons if  I  did  not  read  a  book  before  purchasing 
it.  And  when  I  have  attempted  to  explain 
that  it  would  be  impossible  for  me  to  read 
all  the  books  issued,  they  have  not  hesitated  to 
convey,  by  word  or  gesture,  their  opinion  of  this 
obviously  reckless  way  of  doing  business.  Not 
long  ago  a  man  came  to  my  office  inquiring  for  the 
manager.  When  he  was  directed  to  me  he  said: 
"I  bought  a  book  here  a  few  days  ago,  and  it  is 
imperfect.  There  are  a  number  of  pages  missing, 
while  some  pages  are  repeated."  Then,  with  a 
sneer,  "I  am  surprised  that  a  firm  like  this  should 
sell  imperfect  books."  I  assm-ed  him  that  we  had 
no  intention  of  selling  an  imperfect  book ;  it  was  an 
accident  that  sometimes  happened.  The  wonder 
to  me  was  that  it  did  not  happen  oftener.  I  was 
sorry  if  he  had  been  put  to  any  inconvenience ;  we 
would  cheerfully  give  him  another  copy.  We  could 
return  the  imperfect  copy  to  the  publishers  who 
would  make  it  right  with  us. 

"  But  don't  you  examine  the  books  you  buy  to  see 
if  the  pages  are  all  there?" 

I  told  him  how  impossible  that  would  be.  Why, 
we  often  added  as  many  as  fifty  thousand  volumes 
330 


SELLIiNG   AT  RETAIL 

to  our  stock  in  a  single  week.  He  left  me,  1  am 
sure,  convinced  that  we  were  careless  in  our  mode 
of  doing  business. 

Once  I  was  called  from  my  office  to  meet  a  lady 
who  also  had  a  grievance.  She  accosted  me  with 
the  air  of  one  who  had  been  basely  swindled.  "I 
bought  a  book  here  yesterday,"  she  said,  "one 
you  advertised  as  cheap.  I  wish  to  return  it  and 
get  my  money  back.  My  husband  says  it  is  no 
wonder  that  you  can  sell  books  so  cheap ;  this  one 
is  not  half  finished.  Look  at  the  rough  edges ;  the 
leaves  are  not  even  cut." 

Of  course  I  had  the  price  of  the  book  returned  to 
her  at  once.  Then  I  proceeded  to  show  her  some 
of  the  expensive  and  finely  bound  volumes  with 
rough  edges.  I  explained  how  the  value  of  many 
of  these  books  would  be  lessened  if  the  leaves  were 
trimmed.  I  tried  to  give  her  the  point  of  view 
of  the  book  collector.  She  was  incredulous.  I 
think,  however,  that  she  went  away  a  wiser,  if  not 
a  happier  woman;  and  she  has  probably  blushed 
many  times  snicc  when  recalling  the  incident. 

Tlie  buyer  of  books  for  a  large  store  does  not  go 
out  to  look  for  new  publications.  He  remains  in 
his  office,  and  the  publisher  sends  a  representative 
to  see  him  in  regard  to  oarh  new  l)ook  issued.  In 
New  York  City  he  is  called  upon  on  an  average 
of  once  a  week  by  some  one  from  each  publishing 
house.  At  certain  seasons  of  the  year  these  "com- 
mercial travellers,"  as  they  prefer  to  be  titled, 
331 


THE  BUILDING  OF  A  BOOK 

seem  to  drift  in  ten  or  a  dozen  at  a  time.  They 
will  often  be  found  waiting  in  line  outside  the 
buyer's  office,  each  taking  his  turn.  Each  will 
have  from  two  to  ten  new  books,  all  to  be  ready 
within  the  next  two  weeks. 

I  have  said  that  the  bookseller  of  to-day  has  but 
little  time  to  read  about  the  volumes  that  are  forth- 
coming. Therefore,  most  of  the  new  books  are 
first  brought  to  his  attention  by  the  salesmen  who 
come  to  solicit  orders.  Every  book  must  be  given 
some  consideration ;  and  in  most  cases  some  quan- 
tity of  it  must  be  ordered.  It  may  be  five  copies  or 
it  may  be  five  thousand.  To  the  inexperienced  it 
is  difficult  to  explain  the  precise  considerations  that 
govern  the  amount  of  the  order.  Here  is  where 
the  strain  comes  on  the  buyer ;  for  the  responsibility 
lies  with  him.  Yet  he  must  decide  without  havmg 
read  a  single  page ;  and  he  must  decide  quickly  — ■ 
in  a  few  minutes.  Many  times  he  places  an  order 
without  having  seen  the  completed  book  at  all. 
Some  pages  of  the  text,  a  half-dozen  illustrations, 
and  the  outside  cover  are  perhaps  presented  to 
him.  Even  the  fact  that  the  publisher  has  had 
the  manuscript  read  by  three  or  four  experts  before 
deciding  to  pubhsh,  does  not  always  help  him. 
There  are  many  miscalculations  on  the  part  of  both 
buyer  and  publisher. 

But,  you  insist,  how  does  a  buyer  form  a  judg- 
ment of  the  number  of  copies  to  buy  if  he  does  not 
read  the  book?  There  are  many  things  to  guide 
332 


SELLING   AT  RETAIL 

him.  Tliere  is  the  popularity  of  the  author  to  be 
considered;  the  subject  of  the  book;  the  mechan- 
ical features ;  the  price ;  and  the  publisher's  name 
and  standing.  If  it  is  an  author's  first  book  the 
risk  is  great.  If  both  the  author  and  publisher 
are  new  the  risk  is  still  greater.  For  the  amount 
of  advertising  that  such  a  pubhsher  is  likely  to  do 
is  an  unknown  quantity.  The  buyer  can  estimate 
pretty  closely  on  the  advertising  probabilities  of 
well-established  firms;  he  knows  what  they  are 
accustomed  to  do  in  that  lino. 

In  the  reminiscences  of  a  bookseller  who  began 
business  more  than  seventy  years  ago,  there  is  a 
letter  from  his  mother  written  in  1844,  from  which 
the  following  is  an  excerpt: — 

"I  will  ask  you  once  more  to  consider  my  plea 
regarding  the  policy  and  character  of  some  portion 
of  your  business.  The  selecting  of  books  for  a 
reading  community  is  a  peculiar  responsibility ;  and 
if  the  matter  therein  contained  be  good  in  its  whole- 
sale and  retail  consequences  it  will  rise  up  for  you, 
if  bad,  against  you,  even  here  in  this  partly  Chris- 
tianized America." 

But  the  bookman  no  longer  has  the  ojiportunity 
of  selecting  for  a  community.  Tlic  conditions  are 
changed.  In  these  days  of  extended  advertising 
in  newspapers  and  maga/>ines,  the  reading  public 
learns  all  about  the  new  books  before  going  near  a 
bookstore.  Tlie  demand  is  created  outside  the 
shop;  the  dealer  must  be  prepared  to  supply  it. 
333 


THE  BUILDING  OF  A  BOOK 

Customers  tell  him  not  only  what  to  keep  on  sale, 
but  what  not  to  keep  on  sale.  The  writer  of  the 
present  article  has  been  admonished  not  to  have 
in  stock  the  writings  of  many  of  the  great  authors 
—  Darwin,  Huxley,  Tyndall,  Herbert  Spencer,  Miss 
Braddon,  George  Eliot,  Mrs.  Humphry  Ward, 
Balzac,  Byron,  and  many  others.  A  letter  received 
about  fifteen  years  ago  read  something  like  this :  — 

"1  was  much  surprised  yesterday,  while  passing 
through  your  bookstore,  to  find  a  number  of  im- 
moral books  there  for  sale.  I  copied  down  the 
names  of  a  few  of  them  —  'An  Earnest  Trifler ' 
and  'A  Desperate  Chance.'" 

There  were  four  others  the  titles  of  which  I  do 
not  recall ;  but  the  two  mentioned  made  an  impres- 
sion on  my  mind,  because  I  had  read  the  first  one 
only  a  short  time  before ;  and  knew  it  to  be  a  per- 
fectly pure  story.  The  second  one  happened  to 
have  been  written  by  an  acquaintance  of  mine, 
J.  D.  Jerrold  Kelly,  now  a  commander  in  the 
United  States  Navy.  If  he  ever  reads  this  article 
he  will  probably  be  informed  for  the  first  time  that 
he  is  accused  of  having  written  an  immoral  story. 
The  funny  part  of  the  incident  was  that  the  letter 
in  question  closed  with  the  following :  "I  will  admit 
that  I  have  not  read  any  of  these  books.  I  would 
not  soil  my  mind  by  reading  them ;  but  I  think  the 
titles  are  quite  sufficient  to  lead  many  a  weak- 
minded  person  astray."  I  leave  the  reader  to  draw 
his  own  conclusions. 

334 


SELLING   AT  RETAIL 

I  said  that  the  bookseller  does  not  necessarily 
come  into  contact  with  author  or  publisher  in  the 
building  of  a  book.  He  is,  however,  frequently 
called  upon  by  authors  of  the  class  that  might  be 
termed  unsuccessful.  These  want  his  help.  One 
came  to  me  with  a  proposition  that  I  take  five 
thousand  copies  of  a  book  he  had  written.  "It's  a 
wonderful  book,"  he  said.  "Nothing  like  it  has 
been  written;  and  it's  bound  to  make  a  great  stir. 
It  will  revolutionize  society  completely.  All  it 
needs  is  for  you  to  'push'  the  sale."  When  I 
asked  to  see  the  book,  he  said  it  was  not  published 
yet.  "I  am  looking  for  a  publisher;  and  will  let 
you  see  a  copy  as  soon  as  it  is  ready.  But,"  he 
added,  "if  you  would  give  me  your  order  now  it 
would  be  a  great  help  in  securing  a  publisher." 
It  is  scarcely  necessary  for  me  to  add  that  I  did  not 
feel  called  uj)on  to  help  him  to  the  extent  of  order- 
ing five  thousand  copies  of  the  book  without  seeing 
it,  even  if  society  had  to  remain  unrevolut ionized 
for  a  while  longer.  I  never  .saw  the  author  again; 
nor  have  I  heard  of  the  book.  Now  many  books 
must  have  been  written  for  which  no  publisher  could 
be  found  !  The  pity  is  that  so  many  have  found 
publishers  —  a  statement  witli  which  I  feel  sure 
publishers  anrl  book-sellers  alike  will  agree. 

A  year  or  two  ago  I  was  asked  by  a  friend  to  give 

some  advice  to  a  lady  who  had  written  a  book. 

She  did  not  take  my  advice,  however,  when  I  gave 

it  —  I  hardly  expected  that  she  would.     In  fact, 

335 


THE   BUILDING  OF  A   BOOK 

she  went  directly  contrary  to  it,  and  practically 
published  the  book  herself.  Later  she  came  to  me 
with  the  proposition  that  I  take  her  book  and 
"push"  it  as  the  Century  Dictionary  and  Encyclo- 
paedia was  being  pushed ;  she  was  sure  it  would  have 
a  large  sale,  if  only  I  would  advertise  it  in  the  same 
way  that  these  other  books  were  being  advertised 
—  full  pages  in  the  daily  papers.  The  retail  price 
of  her  book  was,  I  beUeve,  one  dollar.  These  are 
but  two  instances;  I  could  mention  many  more 
equally  ridiculous.  How  that  word  "push"  does 
grate  on  my  ears!  It  will  put  me  in  a  bad  humor 
about  as  quickly  as  anything  I  can  recall. 

My  first  experience  in  the  book  business  was  on 
Nassau  Street,  then  one  of  the  great  book  streets 
of  New  York  City,  if  not  the  greatest.  One  morn- 
ing shortly  after  the  store  opened  an  elderly  couple 
from  the  country  came  in  —  the  man  evidently 
interested  in  books;  but  the  woman  not  at  all. 
While  he  was  looking  over  the  counters  she  re- 
mained well  in  the  centre  of  the  main  aisle,  a  short 
distance  behind  him.  Presently  he  came  to  a 
counter  on  which  there  was  a  placard:  "Books 
fifty  cents  each,"  By  some  mistake  an  expensive 
volume  had  been  laid  with  these  second-hand  books. 
The  man  picked  it  up  and  began  leafing  it  over. 
Then  turning  to  the  woman  he  said,  "That's  cheap 
at  fifty  cents,"  "What's  it  good  for?"  was  her 
query.  "I  wouldn't  spend  fifty  cents  for  it," 
Then  I  heard  him  say,  "That's  worth  more  than 
336 


SELLING   AT  RETAIL 

fifty  cents.  If  that's  the  price  I'll  buy  it."  "  Young 
man,  what's  the  price  of  this  book?"  This  last  to 
me.  I  told  liim,  "Nine  dollars."  The  look  he 
gave  the  woman  was  not  unkindly,  but  it  spoke 
volumes.  He  knew  a  thing  or  two  about  books; 
he  was  thoroughly  conscious  of  his  superiority 
over  her,  when  it  came  to  their  value. 

During  the  last  thirty  years  a  magnificent  work 
has  been  done  in  suppressing  and  destroying  the 
filthy  literature  that  was  almost  openly  sold  in  the 
streets  of  many  of  our  largest  cities.  Too  much 
credit  cannot  be  given  the  society  that  took  the 
matter  in  hand.  I  believe  that  nearly  every 
dealer  to-day  aims  to  keep  his  stock  free  from 
demoralizing  books;  but  in  the  nature  of  things  tlie 
line  of  demarcation  cannot  be  drawn  with  entire 
satisfaction  to  all.  About  twenty  years  ago  an 
itinerant  dealer  was  arrested  in  a  New  Jersey  town 
for  selling  a  certain  book.  I  was  present  at  the 
trial,  which  was  somewhat  farcical.  The  defendant 
had  gathered  together  a  large  number  of  catalogues 
to  show  that  the  l)Ook  had  been  sold  by  the  most 
reputable  dealers  in  the  country;  and  that  it  was 
included  in  the  catalogues  of  most  of  the  public 
libraries.  But  the  judge  would  not  allow  this  as 
evidence.  He  took  the  stand  that  the  whole  ques- 
tion rested  upon  the  book  itself.  It  did  not  mat- 
ter what  the  rest  of  the  world  thought  of  the  book ; 
they  were  there  to  judge  whether  or  not  it  was  im- 
moral. (Tlie  penalty  for  selling  an  immoral  book 
3:57 


THE  BUILDING  OF  A  BOOK 

in  New  Jersey  was,  I  think,  at  least  one  year's  im- 
prisonment.) The  jury  was  composed  of  twelve 
yokels,  eleven  of  them  had  never  heard  of  the 
book,  the  twelfth  said  he  had  read  it  about  twenty 
years  earlier.  As  the  whole  thing  hinged  on  the 
opinion  of  the  jury  as  to  its  character,  copies  were 
supplied  by  the  defendant,  and  the  jury  was  sent 
into  another  room  to  read  the  book.  After  an 
hour  or  so  they  returned.  All  agreed  that  the 
story  was  not  immoral,  and  the  case  was  chsmissed. 
It  would  be  a  pleasure  for  me  to  write  of  the 
many  distinguished  persons  with  whom  I  have 
become  acquainted  during  my  career  as  a  book- 
seller and  buyer.  But  were  I  once  to  begin  on  the 
subject  I  fear  my  readers  would  believe  me  lacking 
in  "terminal  facilities."  I  should  regret,  however, 
to  have  to  close  this  article  without  mention  of  the 
many  delightful  friendships  I  have  formed  with 
authors,  customers,  and  publishers.  And  I  may 
add,  with  the  men  who  sell  to  me  —  whom,  almost 
to  a  man,  I  have  found  thoroughly  conscientious. 
These  are  pleasant  features  that  go  a  long  way 
toward  compensating  one  for  being  in  a  business, 
the  profits  of  which,  at  the  best,  are  small  as 
compared  with  those  of  other  lines  of  trade. 


338 


SELLING   BY   SUBSCRIPTION 
By  Charles  S.  Olcott 

The  business  of  selling  books  may  be  divided, 
in  a  general  way,  into  two  divisions,  one  seeking 
to  bring  the  people  to  the  books,  the  other  aiming 
to  take  the  books  to  the  people.  The  first  operates 
through  the  retail  book  stores,  news-stands, 
department  stores,  and  the  like.  The  other 
employs  agents,  or  advertises  in  the  newspapers 
or  magazines,  to  secure  orders  or  "subscriptions," 
on  receipt  of  which  the  books  are  dcUvered.  The 
latter  method  of  selling  has  become  known  as  the 
"Subscription-book "  business. 

The  agent  usually  calls  at  the  office  or  home  of 
his  prospective  customer  and  shows  samples  of 
the  text  pages,  illustrations,  bindings,  etc.,  bound 
together  in  a  form  known  us  a  "prospectus."  Some- 
times he  exlubits  a  number  of  different  prospec- 
tuses. The  customer  signs  an  order  blank,  which 
the  agent  turns  over  to  the  publisher,  who  makes 
the  deUvery  and  collects  the  money.  To  cover 
the  entire  country,  the  large  publisher  estabhshes 
branch  offices  in  many  difTereiit  cities  or  sells  his 
books  to  .so-called  "general  agents,"  who  .secure 
their  own  canvassers. 


THE  BUILDING  OF  A   BOOK 

were  copies  of  the  same  book  bound  in  "half 
morocco"!  The  explanation  came  later  when 
I  was  incidentally  informed  that  "WiHie  had 
tried  canvassing,  but  most  of  'em  backed  out." 

This  reminds  one  of  the  remark  of  Thoreau 
when,  four  years  after  the  publication  of  his  first 
book  (at  the  author's  expense),  the  pubUsher 
compelled  him  to  remove  706  unsold  copies  out 
of  the  edition  of  1000,  and  he  had  them  all  carted 
to  his  home.  "I  now  have,"  he  said,  "a  library  of 
nearly  900  volumes,  over  700  of  which  I  wrote  my- 
self." It  is  an  interesting  fact  in  this  connection 
that  the  successors  of  that  pubUsher  are  to-day, 
fifty  years  later,  successfully  selling  by  subscription 
an  edition  of  Thoreau's  writings  in  20  volumes,  the 
set  in  the  cheapest  style  of  binding  costing  $100. 

Among  the  famous  books  sold  by  this  method 
have  been  Blaine's  "Twenty  Years  in  Congress," 
Stanley's  "In  Darkest  Africa,"  and  Grant's 
"Memoirs."  The  handsome  fortune  which  the 
publishers  of  the  latter  were  enabled  to  pay  to 
Mrs.  Grant  was  made  possible  only  by  the  applica- 
tion of  the  subscription  method  of  reaching  the 
people. 

Another  form  of  subscription  book,  now  for- 
tunately obsolete,  was  the  book  in  "parts."  A 
"part"  consisted  of  some  twenty-four  or  forty- 
eight  pages,  or  more,  in  paper  covers.  These 
were  deUvered  and  paid  for  by  the  buyer  in  instal- 
ments of  one  or  two  at  a  time  imtil  the  entire 
342 


SELLING   BY  SUBSCRIPTION 

work  was  complete.  Then  the  binding  order 
was  sohcited.  It  was  an  expensive  and  unsatis- 
factory makeshift,  intended  to  reach  those  who 
could  pay  only  a  dollar  or  two  a  month.  The 
theory  was  that  the  people  could  not  be  trusted, 
and  therefore  the  book  must  be  cut  up  and  de- 
livered in  pieces.  Later  the  pubHshers  learned 
that  "most  people  are  honest,"  and  the  modern 
method  is  to  dehver  the  complete  pubUcation  and 
collect  the  price  in  monthly  instalments.  This 
plan  has  proved  far  more  economical  both  to 
subscribers  and  pubUshers,  and  the  losses  are  few 
if  the  management  is  careful  and  conservative. 
One  house  which  carefully  scrutinizes  its  orders 
has  suffered  losses  of  less  than  one  per  cent  on  a 
business  of  several  millions  of  dollars  covering  a 
period  of  fifteen  years. 

In  late  years  by  far  the  greatest  part  of  the  sub- 
scription-book business  has  been  done  with  com- 
plete sets  of  books,  usually  the  writings  of  the 
leading  standard  authors.  These  books  are  sold 
directly  to  the  subscriber  who  gives  a  signed  order, 
and  the  publisher  makes  the  delivery,  pays  the  agent 
a  cash  commission,  and  collects  the  payments  as 
they  fall  due.  The  old,  worthless,  "made-up "  books 
are  rapidly  disappearing,  and  the  subscription- 
book  of  to-day  is  as  a  rule  a  vastly  superior  article 
to  that  of  a  score  of  years  ago.  In  fact  some  of 
the  oldest  and  most  reliable  publishing  houses 
in  America  now  offer  their  choicest  output  by 
343 


THE   BUILDING  OF  A  BOOK 

subscription.  A  large  investment^  of  capital  in 
plates,  illustrations,  editorial  work,  etc,  such  as 
is  necessary  in  many  of  the  extensive  editions 
of  standard  works,  could  not  be  made  unless  there 
were  an  assured  return.  The  subscription  method 
of  selUng  makes  such  undertakings  possible, 
and  the  result  of  its  adoption  has  been  the 
issue  of  many  superb  pubhcations  which  never 
would  or  could  have  been  undertaken,  had  the 
retail  book  store  been  the  only  outlet  to  the  mar- 
ket. The  subscription  business  has  in  this  way 
proved  a  marked  benefit  to  the  lovers  of  fine 
editions  of  their  favorite  authors.  The  book- 
lover  has  been  benefited,  too,  in  the  matter  of 
prices.  The  agent's  commission  under  the  modern 
methods  is  no  greater  than  the  book-seller's  profit, 
and  no  extraordinary  allowance  is  made  for  losses, 
as  many  imagine,  for  the  losses  are  comparatively 
small.  The  desire  to  extend  his  business  leads 
the  publisher  to  make  his  books  more  attractive, 
while  there  is  plenty  of  competition  to  keep  the 
prices  down.  It  is  a  fact  that  the  buyer  is  to-day 
getting  a  far  better  book  for  his  money  than  ever 
before. 

The  personnel  of  the  canvassing  force  has  also 
undergone  a  change.  A  business  such  as  the  best 
houses  are  now  doing  requires  agents  of  intelli- 
gence, tact,  and  judgment.  The  callow  youth 
cannot  succeed  as  he  did  once.  The  man  who 
has  failed  at  everything  else  will  fail  here.  There 
344 


SELLING  BY  SUBSCRIPTION 

are  now  men  and  women  engaged  in  selling  books 
by  subscription,  who  possess  business  ability  of 
a  high  order.  Many  of  them  have  well-estabhshed 
lines  of  trade,  —  regular  customers  who  depend 
upon  them  to  supply  their  wants  and  keep  them 
informed.  The  old  jibes  about  the  book-agent 
fall  flat  when  apphed  to  them.  They  do  not  bore 
their  customers  or  tire  them  out.  They  serve 
them,  and  the  customers  are  glad  to  be  served  by 
them. 

I  have  taken  care  to  point  out  that  these  obser- 
vations apply  to  the  business  as  conducted  by 
the  older  and  more  conservative  book  publishers, 
who  value  their  reputation.  In  a  consideration 
of  the  subject  a  sharp  distinction  should  be  drawn 
between  such  pubUshers  and  a  class  of  irrespon- 
sible schemers  who  by  various  ingenious  devices 
seek  to  gain  the  public  ear  and  then  proceed  to 
impose  upon  their  victims  to  the  full  extent  of 
their  credulity.  In  recent  years  many  schemes 
have  been  devised,  —  a  few  honest,  some  about 
half  honest,  and  the  rest  miserable  "  fakes." 

One  of  the  earliest  and  most  successful  "schemes," 
not  dishonest  but  certainly  ingenious,  was  that  of 
a  publisher  who  had  a  large  stock  of  unmarket- 
able books  whose  retail  price  was  $6  a  volume. 
He  organized  an  association  and  sold  memberships 
at  SIO,  the  iiicrMbership  entitling  the  subscriber  to 
one  of  the  SO  books  and  the  privilege  of  buying 
miscellaneous  books  at  a  discount.  The  discounts 
340 


THE   BUILDING  OF  A   BOOK 

reaUy  were  no  greater  than  could  have  been  ob- 
tained in  any  department  store,  but  the  "associa- 
tion" thought  it  had  a  great  concession  and 
multipUed  so  rapidly  that  the  unmarketable  book 
had  to  be  reprinted  again  and  again. 

The  next  "scheme"  to  come  into  prominence  was 
the  so-called  "raised  contract."  The  process  was 
simple.  The  order  blank  read,  for  example,  $5  a 
volume,  but  the  pubUsher  wanted  "  a  few  influen- 
tial citizens  Uke  yourself"  to  write  testimonials,  and 
had  a  few  copies  for  sale  to  such  people  —  only  a 
very  few  —  at  $3,  merely  the  cost  of  the  paper  and 
binding.  By  paying  cash  you  could  get  another 
reduction,  and  as  a  special  favor  from  the  agent 
still  another,  and  so  on,  until  you  found  the  price 
whittled  down  to  the  ridiculously  low  sum  of  $2.65. 
When  the  customer  woke  up  and  found  that 
all  his  neighbors  were  also  "influential  citizens" 
who  had  bought  at  the  same  price  or  possibly  less, 
and  that  the  book  would  be  dear  at  $2,  he  mentally 
resolved  to  "buy  no  more  from  that  house." 
The  figures  are  given  merely  to  illustrate  the  idea 
and  are  not  quoted  from  any  particular  proposi- 
tion. It  is  unfortunately  true,  however,  that  the 
plan  here  illustrated  is  now  in  daily  use  by  many 
concerns,  although  there  are  indications  that  it  is 
gradually  dying  as  the  result  of  overwork ! 

Another  scheme  is  to  advertise  a  "a  few  slightly 
damaged"  copies  of  a  book  for  sale  at  barely  the 
cost  of  the  sheets  —  to  save  rebinding.  A  pub- 
346 


SELLING  BY  SUBSCRIPTION 

lisher  once  confided  to  nie  that  he  was  doing  a 
"land-office  business"  selling  "sUghtly  damaged 
stock."  "How  do  you  damage  the  stock,"  I 
asked,  —  "throw  the  books  across  the  room?" 
"No,"  he  replied,  laughing,  "we  haven't  time  to 
do  that." 

Some  of  the  schemes  are  so  ludicrous  as  to  cause 
one  to  wonder  how  anybody  can  be  made  to  believe 
the  story.  Such  was  the  one  which  soberly 
informed  the  prospective  customer  that  he  had 
been  selected  by  a  committee  of  Congress  as  one 
of  a  few  representative  citizens  to  whom  the 
United  States  government  would  be  willing  to 
sell  some  of  its  precious  documents.  He  was  not 
asked  to  subscribe,  but  merely  to  "let  us  know" 
if  he  didn't  want  it,  for  "another  gentleman" 
was  quite  anxious  to  secure  his  copy,  etc.  Of 
course  the  fortunate  representative  citizen  made 
haste  to  secure  the  copy  which  Congress  intended 
him  to  have.  I  am  told  that  the  originator  of  this 
scheme  made  a  fortune  out  of  it. 

All  these  schenios,  from  the  laughably  absurd 
to  the  contemptibly  mean,  should  be  regarded 
merely  as  an  excrescence  upon  the  legitimate 
subscription-book  business.  They  are  hke  the 
"get-rich-quick"  and  "wildcat"  banking  schemes 
which  flourish  in  prosperous  times,  but  have 
nothing  whatever  in  common  with  legitimate 
financial  afTairs.  It  is  unfortunate  for  the  book 
trade  that  these  schemers  selected  books  as  the 
347 


THE   BUILDING   OF  A   BOOK 

particular  kind  of  merchandise  upon  which  to 
exercise  their  ingenuity.  They  admit  that  their 
agents  are  expected  not  to  canvass  the  merits  of 
the  book,  but  to  ''sell  their  story."  They  might 
have  done  the  same  thing  had  they  chosen  jewehy, 
bric-a-brac,  rugs,  paintings,  stocks,  bonds,  or 
anything  else  as  the  subject  for  their  exploitation. 
The  rehable  pubUshers  are  hoping  that  at  no 
distant  date  the  schemers  will  take  up  some  of 
these  other  Unes,  although  they  bear  no  grudge 
against  the  latter. 

If  any  prejudice  exists  in  the  public  mind 
against  subscription  books,  it  is  caused  by  the 
illegitimate  use  of  books  as  a  means  of  "fooling" 
if  not  of  swindhng  the  people.  There  are  many 
honorable  men  and  many  houses  of  the  highest 
class  who  are  engaged  in  the  subscription-book 
business.  These  should  no  more  be  classed  with 
such  schemers  as  I  have  described  than  Tiffany's 
with  the  diamond  merchants  who  ornament  the 
fronts  of  their  stores  with  the  three  balls.  The 
leading  legal  hghts  of  the  world  and  the  gentry 
who  frequent  the  poHce  courts  are  all  called  lawyers ; 
the  eminent  surgeon  who  performs  marvellous 
operations  involving  incredible  knowledge  and 
skill  and  the  half-breed  who  used  to  pull  teeth 
in  front  of  the  circus,  the  brass  band  drowning 
the  shrieks  of  his  victims,  are  both  called  doctors. 
The  eminent  divine  and  his  ignorant  colored 
brother  may  both  be  preachers.  IntelUgent  people 
348 


SELLING  BY  SUBSCRIPTION 

know  how  to  discriminate  between  these,  and  do 
not  condemn  the  one  for  the  faults  of  the  others. 
And  so  the  intelligent  and  honorable  book  agent 
who  represents  a  thoroughly  rehable  pubUshing 
house  deserves  to  be  differentiated  from  the 
fellow  who  comes  with  a  lie  on  his  tongue,  for 
which  an  imscrupulous  schemer  is  directly  respon- 
sible. 

The  subscription-book  business,  in  the  hands 
of  honorable  men,  has  performed  a  great  service 
to  the  whole  comitry,  by  putting  good  books  into 
thousands  and  hundreds  of  thousands  of  homes, 
where,  but  for  them,  there  would  be  httle  to  read 
beyond  the  newspaper  or  the  magazine.  The 
best  pubUshers  have  found  it  the  most  practicable 
method  of  distribution  for  their  more  extensive 
productions,  and  thousands  of  thoughtful  men 
are  glad  of  the  opportunity  to  receive  the  repre- 
sentatives of  such  houses  and  to  have  the  best 
of  the  new  pubUcations  promptly  brought  to  their 
attention. 


:i4'j 


SELLING   AT  AUCTION 
By  John  Anderson,  Jr. 

While  the  auctioneer  is  admitted  to  be  an  im- 
})ortant  factor  in  the  handling  of  a  book  once  it 
has  become  a  finished  product,  his  relations  to 
it  are  not  clearly  understood,  even  by  many  of 
those  who  avail  themselves  of  his  services  as  a 
medium  of  sale  or  purchase.  An  endeavor  shall 
therefore  be  made  to  present  here,  in  the  simplest 
possible  way,  some  facts  which  may  prove  both 
pertinent  and  enlightening. 

It  is  to  be  presumed  that  the  auctioneering  of 
books  began  at  the  time  when  it  first  became  ap- 
parent to  the  owners  of  libraries  that  a  necessity 
existed  for  the  estabUshment  of  a  system  by  which 
they  could  reach  the  largest  number  of  buyers, 
and  bring  about  the  quickest  sales  and  returns,  for 
these  are,  admittedl3%  the  distinguishing  features 
of  the  auction  method,  as  opposed  to  all  others.* 

^  "  But  it  was  soon  perceived,  that  when  necessity  or  inclina- 
tion determined  the  disposal  of  libraries,  the  auction  method 
was  on  the  whole  by  far  the  best,  producing  as  it  did,  and  still 
does,  competition  amongst  a  larger  circle  of  intending  purchasers, 
with  a  better  result  than  would  have  been  obtained  by  selling 
en  6Zoc." — John  Lawlek,  in  "Book  Auctions  in  England  in 
the  Seventeenth  Century." 

350 


SELLING   AT  AUCTION 

Selling  to  the  highest  bidder  proved  the  happy 
solution  of  the  problem,  and  to  this  day  it  has  been 
universally  recognized  as  the  most  satisfactory 
method  of  dispersion.  To  quote  a  book  as  having 
sold  for  so  much  at  auction  gives  it  in  the  minds 
of  all  true  bookmen  the  best  possible  criterion 
of  value.  The  prices  obtained,  though  variable, 
represent  a  consensus  of  opinion,  and  may  be 
considered  as  standards. 

So  far  as  can  be  traced,  the  earliest  known 
book  auctions  took  place  in  Holland.  The  hbrary 
of  Marnix  of  St.  Aldegonde  was  sold  b}'  Christopher 
Poret  at  Leyden,  July  6,  1599,  this  being  the 
earUest  recorded  sale.  The  first  Enghsh  book 
sale  is  supposed  to  have  been  that  held  on  October 
31,  1G7G,  when  the  library  of  the  then  lately  de- 
ceased Rev.  Lazarus  Seaman  was  sold  at  his  resi- 
dence in  Warwick  Court,  Warwick  Lane,  London, 
by  William  Cooper.  The  earliest  known  sale  in 
America  occurred  at  the  Crown  Coffee  House  in 
Boston,  on  July  2,  1717,  and  succeeding  days, 
when  was  dispersed  the  library  of  the  famous 
early  New  England  divine,  Rev.  Ebcnczer  Peni- 
bcrton.  Philadelphia  held  l)ook  auction  sales 
many  years  in  advance  of  Now  York,  the  earliest 
known  being  that  of  the  library  of  Cluu'Ios  Read, 
in  1737.  The  date  of  the  first  sale  in  New  York 
is  unknown,  as  is  the  name  of  the  auctioneer,  but 
an  aflvortiscment  of  McLauglilin  &  lilakely,  of 
41  Maiden  Lane,  in  a  paper  of  May  4,  1825,  reads 


THE   BUILDING  OF  A   BOOK 

as  follows,  "From  the  long  acquaintance  of  Mr, 
McLaughlin  with  the  book  auction  business,  he 
trusts  that  the  firm  will  receive  a  consequent  share 
of  pubhc  patronage."  It  is  known  that  McLaugh- 
lin &  Co.  held  unimportant  book  sales  at  78  Maiden 
Lane  in  1824,  and  late  though  this  date  is,  it  will 
have  to  stand  as  representing  the  earliest  book 
auction  sale  in  New  York  until  newly  tliscovered 
evidence  reveals  an  earlier  recorded  one.^ 

It  rarely  happens  that  a  really  great  collection 
of  books  is  sold  otherwise  than  at  auction.  The 
collector  recognizes  that  the  taste  and  judgment 
displayed  by  him  in  the  acquirement  of  his  Hbrary 
will,  by  the  medium  of  the  auctioneer's  carefully 
prepared  catalogue,  be  made  evident  to  all  suc- 
ceeding generations  of  book  lovers.  How  many 
would  to-day  know  the  names  of  George  Brinley, 
John  Allan,  and  WilHam  Menzies,  were  it  not  for 
the  sale  catalogues  of  their  collections?  They 
attained  book-fame  without  having  sought  it. 

In  this  connection,  an  extract  may  be  quoted 
from  the  will  of  Edmond  de  G  on  court,  the  distin- 
guished French  writer  and  collector :  — 

"  My  wish  is  that  my  Drawings,  my  Prints,  my  Curiosities, 
my  Books  —  in  a  word,  these  things  of  Art  which  have  been 
the  joy  of  my  life  —  shall  not  be  consigned  to  the  cold  tomb 
of  a  Museum,  and  subjected  to  the  stupid  glance  of  the  care- 
less passer-by ;  but  I  require  that  they  shall  all  be  dispersed 
under  the  hammer  of  the  auctioneer,  so  that  the  pleasure 
which  the  acquiring  of  each  one  of  them  has  given  me  shall 

^  "  Seventy  Years  of  Book  Auctions  in  New  York,"  Robert 
F.  Roden. 

352 


SELLING   AT   AUCTION 

be  given  again,  in  each  case,  to  some  inheritor  of  my  own 
tastes." 

A  list  of  those  whose  hbraries  have  been  dis- 
persed at  pubHc  auction  would  contain  an  aston- 
ishing proportion  of  names  great  in  the  world's 
history.  Even  in  cases  where  the  collections  were 
not  directly  dispersed  by  the  auction  method,  it 
will  be  found  that  the  bulk  of  the  more  important 
works  contained  therein  had,  at  some  previous 
period,  passed  through  the  auctioneer's  hands. 

To  unthinking  minds,  there  exist  certain  preju- 
dices against  the  auction  method,  doubtless  due 
to  a  want  of  discrimination  between  the  man)-- 
who  faithfully  pursue  their  calling,  and  the  few 
who  by  questionable  dealings  have  dishonored 
and  discredited  themselves  rather  than  their 
craft.  Benjamin  Frankhn  is  only  one  among 
many  of  the  American  book  auctioneers  whose 
names  were  synonymous  with  integrity  during 
thf!  long  period  —  nearly  two  hundred  years  — 
in  which  their  services  were  employed  in  the 
dispersal  of  hbraries.  The  long  and  honorable 
careers  of  c(>rtain  of  the  English  book  auction 
houses  —  notably  that  of  Messrs.  Sotheby,  Wil- 
kinson &  Hodge,  founded  in  1744  —  shows  con- 
clusively that  the  business  itself  has  been  accepted 
by  the  public,  as  forming  an  essential  part  in 
disseminating  the  world's  literature. 

The  auctioneer  is  in  a  position  to  extend  many 
exceptional  advantages  to  his  customers. 
353 


THE   BUILDING   OF  A   BOOK 

The  quantity  and  variety  of  the  books  offered 
is  far  greater  than  is  possible  to  be  found  in  the 
stock  of  any  dealer,  being  subject  to  constant 
additions  and  changes.  The  average  quality  is 
high  where  the  auctioneer  makes  the  sales  of 
private  collections  a  specialty,  and  much  inferior 
where  dependence  is  placed  upon  the  sale  of  mate- 
rial received  from  the  booksellers  which  they  have 
been  unable  to  sell  after  repeated  efforts.  Natu- 
rally, the  better  items  are  reserved  for  their  own 
shelves.  Among  the  leaders  in  the  book  auction 
trade,  it  will  be  found  that  a  very  large  proportion 
of  the  material  offered  by  them  comes  from 
authentic  private  sources,  though,  in  many  cases, 
there  is  a  disinclination  on  the  part  of  the  owner 
to  allow  the  use  of  his  or  her  name  in  connection 
with  the  sale. 

The  prices  obtained  for  books  at  sales  held  by 
regular  book  auctioneers  (no  pretence  of  recogni- 
tion need  be  accorded  furniture  and  bric-a-brac 
auctioneers,  who  occasionally  secure  consignments 
of  books  from  parties  unaware  of  the  existence  of 
an  establishment  devoted  exclusively  to  their 
sale)  are  necessarily  variable,  being  governed,  as 
is  everything  else,  by  the  law  of  demand  and 
supply.  A  particularly  choice  item  will  command 
about  the  same  price  whenever  offered,  —  generally 
an  increasing  one,  —  but  the  ordinary  book  can 
often  be  obtained  at  bargain  figures.  This  ele- 
ment of  uncertainty  goes  far  toward  making  the 
354 


SELLING   AT   AUCTION 

auction  sale  so  attractive  to  collectors  with  slender 
purses,  as  also  to  those  who  may  be  designated 
"moral  book-gamblers,"  always  ready  to  take  a 
chance  where  the  outcome  is  problematical.  Many 
fine  collections  have  been  gathered  by  well-informed 
private  buyers,  who  made  a  point  of  attending 
auction  sales,  and  purchasing  desirable  items, 
when  for  some  reason  the  prices  were  lower  than 
usual.  Some  of  these  collections  have  since  been 
sold  at  auction,  and  the  owners  have  netted  a 
handsome  profit  on  their  investments. 

Many  book  buyers  entertain  erroneous  ideas 
regarding  the  condition  of  the  volumes  sold  at 
leading  auction  houses,  confounding  them  with 
those  sold  at  storage  warehouses,  furniture  auction 
rooms,  etc.  The  fact  is,  a  very  large  proportion 
of  the  books,  even  of  the  older  species,  are  in  fine, 
clean  condition,  many  being  in  choice  bindings, 
and  equal  to  the  most  fastidious  requirement. 

An  indication  of  the  important  relation  of  the 
book  auctioneer  to  the  market,  as  a  source  of 
supply,  may  be  judged  from  the  issue  of  a  bulletin 
by  the  American  Library  Association  during  the 
past  year,  calling  attention  of  the  three  thousand 
or  more  public  librarir's  of  the  coimtry  to  the 
advantages  of  purchasing  at  auction  sales,  recom- 
monding  certain  named  houses,  and  outlining 
the  mode  of  procedure  in  sending  bids.  It  took 
years  of  hard  and  discouraging  labor  to  bring  about 
conditifHis  that  would  warrant  this  recognition. 


THE   BUILDING  OF  A   BOOK 

The  great  majority  of  buyers  at  book  auctions 
reside  in  localities  widely  removed  from  the  cities 
where  the  sales  are  held,  and  it  is,  of  course,  neces- 
sary that  these  customers  should  be  given  equal 
advantages  with  the  home  buyers  in  effecting 
purchases  at  sales.  The  printed  catalogue  is 
made  the  mecUum  of  this  accompUshment.  The 
books  are  described  in  detail,  mention  being  made 
of  the  author's  name,  the  title,  size,  binding,  place, 
and  date  of  publication,  and  condition  (if  either 
above  or  below  the  average).  If  the  edition  is 
special,  or  it  is  a  large  paper  copy,  this  is  duly 
set  forth  in  the  description.  All  imperfections  are 
carefully  noted.  The  aim  of  the  auctioneer  is 
to  bring  the  book  or  set  of  books  so  clearly  before 
the  mind  of  the  prospective  buyer  as  to  gain  his 
confidence.  An  express  stipulation  is  made  in 
the  conditions  of  sale  that  any  book  found  to  be 
otherwise  than  as  described  may  be  returned,  but 
as  the  auctioneer  desires  to  avoid  this  contingency, 
he  is  generally  careful  in  his  descriptions,  and  they 
may,  as  a  rule,  be  depended  upon. 

A  printed  shp  is  enclosed  in  each  catalogue  on 
which  the  intending  purchaser  notes  the  numbers 
of  the  lots  he  desires  and  the  limit  of  price  to 
which  he  is  prepared  to  go.  It  is  then  forwarded 
by  mail  to  the  auction  house,  where  the  slips  are 
tabulated  by  a  clerk,  the  names  and  amounts 
being  placed  against  each  item  in  a  specially 
prepared    catalogue.     Incidentally,    it    may    be 

356 


SELLING   AT    AUCTION 

stated  that  all  bids  are  considered  as  strictly 
confidential. 

At  the  time  of  sale,  the  principal  of  the  estab- 
lishment, or  one  of  his  chief  assistants,  takes  his 
place  in  the  audience  on  an  even  footing  with  all 
other  buyers,  and  uses  the  bids,  as  enrolled,  in 
competition  with  such  as  may  be  ofifered  by  other 
attendants  at  the  sale. 

Where  two  or  more  bids  have  been  received 
on  any  item,  the  competition  is  first  narrowed  by 
the  eUmination  of  all  except  the  two  highest  ones, 
and  then  the  start  is  made  at  a  figure  just  beyond 
the  second  highest.  The  battle  between  the 
auctioneer,  acting  as  the  representative  of  the 
out-of-town  bidder,  and  some  ardent  book  lover 
personally  attending  the  sale,  for  the  possession 
of  a  particularly  coveted  work,  often  provokes 
genuine  enthusiasm.  It  is  finally  knocked  down 
to  the  highest  bidder  at  the  point  where  competition 
ceases,  and  this  is  often  much  below  the  limit 
named  by  the  buyer.  The  wise  purchaser  at 
auction,  when  assured  of  the  honorable  standing 
of  the  house  with  which  he  deals,  will  not  hesitate 
in  sending  liboral  bids,  for  by  so  doing  he  will 
gain  much  and  loso  little. 

The  methods  of  conducting  sales  and  handling 
bids  differ  somewhat  in  the  various  cities,  but  that, 
as  above  outlined,  is  arloplfnl  by  the  leading  houses. 
In  some  concerns,  the  auctioneer  himself  executes 
the  commis.sions  from  the  rostrum,  but  when  this 
357 


THE   BUILDING  OF  A  BOOK 

is  done,  even  though  he  may  be  a  man  of  the 
strictest  integrity,  the  method  is  open  to  criticism, 
it  being  well  understood  that  the  reputation  of  an 
auctioneer  is  largely  dependent  on  the  high  prices 
he  obtains. 

There  is  a  material  difference  between  the 
English  and  American  methods  of  cataloguing 
books  for  sale  at  auction.  In  England  the  charges 
are  inclusive,  the  cost  of  printing,  postage,  etc., 
being  assumed  by  the  auctioneer,  so  that  he  finds 
it  to  his  interest  to  compress  catalogue  descriptions 
into  the  narrowest  possible  compass,  to  minimize 
the  distribution  of  the  catalogue,  and  to  spend  as 
small  an  amount  of  money  in  advertising  as  pos- 
sible. In  America,  the  charges  are  exclusive,  the 
commission  representing  the  auctioneer's  only  in- 
terest, and  the  incidental  expenses  of  printing, 
etc.,  are  paid  by  the  consignor.  Because  of  this, 
a  more  liberal  poHcy  is  pursued  as  to  expendi- 
tures. Many  good  titles  that  are  bunched  in 
lots  in  the  London  sales  are  here  separately  cata- 
logued, mention  is  made  of  all  defects,  and,  on 
the  average,  more  careful  attention  is  paid  to  the 
details  of  the  descriptions.  Catalogues  are  given 
a  wider  circulation  in  America,  and  more  depend- 
ence is  placed  on  the  receipt  of  bids  from  out-of- 
town  buyers.  New  methods  and  channels  of 
advertising  are  being  constantly  considered  and 
utilized.  It  is  believed  that  these  elements,  com- 
bined, conduce  to  the  benefit  of  the  consignor, 
358 


SELLING   AT  AUCTION 

when  the  material  offered  possesses  real  interest 
and  value. 

The  auctioneer  who  conducts  a  modern  high- 
class  establishment,  where  a  guaranty  of  intelU- 
gent  ser\dce  is  given,  can  employ  only  the  best 
available  talent  for  cataloguing  purposes,  either 
men  of  proved  abihty  and  special  knowledge, 
or  those  that  show  a  decided  aptitude  for  the  work 
and  give  promise  of  attainment. 

Most  book  auction  houses  in  this  country  are 
obhged  to  call  in  the  services  of  an  interpreter 
when  a  book  in  other  than  the  English  or  French 
language  is  to  be  catalogued,  but  in  Europe  the 
force  employed  is,  as  a  rule,  equal  to  all  emergen- 
cies. To  illustrate  the  variety  of  demand  made 
upon  the  modern  auctioneer,  in  this  line,  it  may  be 
stated  that  the  establishment  with  which  the 
writer  is  connected,  can  catalogue  items  in  English, 
French,  German,  ItaUan,  Spanish,  Portuguese, 
Latin,  Greek,  Dutch,  Swedish,  and  Danish;  in  fact, 
nearly  all  of  the  European,  and  some  of  the  Oriental 
Languages,  without  calling  upon  outside  help. 

A  book  auctioneer  would  find  it  as  impossible 
to  properly  handle  books  without  the  use  of  a 
suitable  reference  library,  as  for  a  carpenter  to 
work  without  tools.  In  a  live,  up-to-date  auction 
house,  every  bibliographical  work  of  real  value 
not  already  possessed  is  secured  when  found  in 
the  open  markets,  and  consulted  frequently. 
These  collections  often  represent  an  expenditure 
359 


THE   BUILDING  OF  A  BOOK 

of  thousands  of  dollars.  Some  single  works  call 
for  the  outla}^  of  hundreds,  but  they  are  essential 
for  the  use  of  the  expert  cataloguer. 

The  labor  involved  in  handling  books  in  connec- 
tion with  their  sale  at  auction  is  very  heavy. 
Supposing  that  a  library  of,  say,  five  thousand 
volumes  is  offered  for  sale.  It  is  packed  by  the 
owner,  or  under  his  directions,  and  is  forwarded 
to  the  auctioneer.  The  boxes  are  opened  and  the 
contents  placed  in  a  special  compartment.  They 
are  then  catalogued,  each  item  being  separately 
handled.  Another  clerk  then  arranges  them  for 
exhibition  on  the  shelves,  where  they  remain  until 
the  time  of  sale.  During  the  sale,  they  are  again 
exhibited,  and  handled,  and  after  it  are  laid 
aside  in  groups,  according  to  their  newly  acquired 
ownership.  When  shipment  is  made  the  follow- 
ing day,  or  later,  another  handling  is  required. 
No  scheme  can  be  devised  that  will  admit  of  less 
than  four  handlings  of  the  entire  lot.  WTien  we 
consider  that  in  some  establishments  nearly  a 
million  separate  items  are  received  and  sold  each 
season,  some  idea  may  be  formed  of  the  labor 
involved. 

The  auctioneer  has  been  obliged  to  either  adapt 
his  business  to  modern  conditions,  even  though  it 
entails  heavy  expense  and  added  burdens,  or  take 
a  rear  place  in  the  procession.  Business  cannot 
be  transacted  now  as  it  was  even  five  years  ago, 
though  many  attempt  to  do  it  by  the  antiquated 
360 


SELLING  AT  AUCTION 

methods  of  the  times  "befo'  de  war."  More  books 
are  sold  by  auction  each  successive  year  ;  and  with 
the  wonderful  progress  being  made  in  the  literary 
development  of  this  great  country,  it  is  likely  that 
the  auctioneer  will  become  in  the  near  future  an 
even  more  important  factor  in  the  formation  and 
dissemination  of  Hbraries  than  ever  before. 

The  following  extract  from  a  magazine  article 
on  "The  Book  Auction,"  written  years  ago  by 
Joel  Benton,  may  be  deemed  a  fitting  conclusion. 
He  said :  — 

"  In  no  one  place  are  there  so  many  eager  patrons  of  the 
book  auction  as  in  New  York.  Here  are  men  who  can  give 
thousands  of  dollars  for  a  single  book,  if  they  choose,  and  add 
it  to  an  already  extremely  valuable  collection. 

"  It  is  pleasant  to  see  these  men  and  their  representatives 
sitting  in  the  auction  room,  and  poring  over  their  catalogues. 
There  are  times  when  they  must  not  be  disturbed,  or  spoken 
to.  Great  issues  depend  upon  their  utmost  attention.  Not 
Izaak  Walton,  the  many  rare  editions  of  whose  one  great 
book  they  rapturously  fish  for,  ever  fished  more  intently  for 
trout  and  grayling  than  they  for  the  beauties  of  thought  and 
of  the  printer's  art. 

"  No  idyls  of  the  brook  call  your  chronic  book  buyer  to 
bask  in  green  mpadows,  and  imder  cerulean  skies  while  the 
auction  season  lasts.  The  pine  floor,  the  gaslight,  and  the 
voice  of  the  auctioneer  hold  him.  IILs  house  may  overflow 
with  thousands  of  unshelved  volumes.  Naught  cares  he. 
It  is  not  Vjecause  he  is  short  of  reading  that  he  buys.  It  is 
because  he  is  drawn  l)y  that  fascinating,  never-to-be-acrounted- 
for,  and  inexpressible  ardor  of  the  pursuit.  I  have  a  friend 
who  says  he  would  rather  attend  a  Ijook  auction  than  spend 
an  evening  with  the  President,  or  with  our  greatest  general, 
or  with  a  literary  lion  like  Tennyson  or  Browning." 


361 


SELECTING  FOR  A  PUBLIC  LIBRARY 

By  Arthur  E.  Bostwick 

In  selecting  books  for  a  public  library,  the  two 
things  generally  taken  into  account  are  the  public 
desire  and  the  pubUc  need.  The  different  values 
attached  to  each  of  these  two  factors  may  be  said 
to  determine  the  policy  of  the  library  in  book- 
buying.  The  extreme  cases,  where  full  force  is 
given  to  one  factor  while  the  other  is  entirely  dis- 
regarded, do  not,  of  course,  exist.  Libraries  do 
not  purchase  every  book  that  is  asked  for,  without 
considering  whether  such  purchases  are  right  and 
proper.  Nor  do  they,  on  the  other  hand,  disre- 
gard popular  demand  altogether  and  purchase 
from  a  Hst  made  up  solely  with  regard  to  what  the 
community  ought  to  read  rather  than  what  it 
wants  to  read.  Between  these  two  extremes,  how- 
ever, there  may  be  an  indefinite  number  of  means. 
A  librarian  may,  for  instance,  purchase  chiefly 
books  in  general  demand,  exercising  judgment  in 
disregarding  such  requests  as  he  may  deem  im- 
proper. Or  he  may  buy  chiefly  those  books  that 
in  his  opinion  should  be  read  in  his  community, 
listening  to  the  voice  of  the  public  only  when  it 
362 


SELECTING   FOR  A  PUBLIC   LIBRARY 

becomes  iniportimate.  Several  considerations  may 
have  part  in  influencing  his  course  in  this  regard. 
In  the  first  place,  a  Ubrary  with  plenty  of  money 
at  conmiand  may  in  a  measure  follow  both  plans ; 
in  other  words,  it  may  buy  not  only  all  the  good 
books  that  the  public  wants  to  read,  but  those  also 
that  it  should  read.  The  more  limited  the  appro- 
priation for  book  purchase,  the  more  pressing  be- 
comes the  need  that  the  librarian  should  decide 
on  a  precise  policy.  Again,  a  library  whose  books 
are  for  general  circulation  would  naturally  give 
more  heed  to  popular  demand  than  a  reference 
library  used  chiefly  by  students.  Further,  an  en- 
dowed institution,  not  dependent  on  public  suj)- 
port,  could  afford  to  disregard  the  public  wishes  to 
an  extent  impossible  in  the  case  of  a  library  whose 
expenses  are  paid  by  the  nmnicipality  from  the 
proceeds  of  taxation.  Above  and  beyond  all  these 
considerations,  the  personal  equation  comes  in, 
sometimes  very  powerfully.  It  often  seems  as  if 
some  library  authorities  regard  popular  favor  as 
an  actual  mark  of  discredit,  while  others  look  upon 
it  almost  as  a  condition  precedent  to  purchase. 
Take,  as  an  example,  the  so-called  "fiction  ques- 
tion," over  which  most  libraries,  and  some  of  their 
patrons,  are  at  present  more  or  less  exercised. 
There  can  be  no  doubt  of  the  popular  regard  for 
this  form  of  literature,  especially  for  the  current 
novel  or  romance.  Some  libraries  would  sternly 
discourage  this  preference  and  refuse  to  purchase 
363 


THE   BUILDING  OF  A   BOOK 

fiction  less  than  one  year  old,  while  others  do  not 
hesitate  to  buy,  within  the  limits  of  their  purses, 
all  such  books  as  would  be  Hkely  to  interest  or  en- 
tertain the  average  reader  of  taste  and  intelligence. 
The  views  of  the  selector  regarding  the  relative 
importance  of  the  library's  duties  as  an  educator 
and  an  entertainer  must  also  affect  his  views. 

It  has  been  tacitly  assumed  that  the  selection 
is  made  by  one  person.  As  a  matter  of  fact,  how- 
ever, the  final  approval  is  generally  given  by  a 
book  committee  of  some  kind,  usually  a  committee 
of  the  library  trustees  or  persons  responsible  to  them, 
often  with  the  help  of  outside  advisers.  The  weight 
of  the  librarian's  views  with  this  body  will  depend 
on  various  circumstances.  Sometimes  he  has  his 
own  way;  sometimes  his  wishes  are  practically 
disregarded.  Moreover,  the  composition  of  such 
a  body  varies  so  that  any  continuous  policy  is 
difficult  for  it. 

Owing  to  all  these  facts,  it  is  probable  that  no 
two  libraries  in  the  United  States,  even  when  they 
are  closely  related  by  classification,  as  when  both 
are  branch  libraries  for  circulation,  state  libraries, 
public  reference  hbraries,  or  university  libraries, 
are  pursuing  exactly  the  same  policy  in  book  pur- 
chase, although,  as  has  been  said,  their  various 
policies  are  always  compounded  of  different  pro- 
portions of  these  two  factors,  —  regard  for  the 
wishes  and  demands  of  their  users,  and  considera- 
tion of  what  is  right  and  proper  for  those  users, 
364 


SELECTING   FOR  A   PUBLIC  LIBRARY 

from  whatever  standpoint.  The  stickler  for  uni- 
formity will  lament  this  diversity,  but  it  is  probably 
a  good  thing.  In  many  libraries,  there  are  as  many 
minds  as  there  are  men,  and  it  cannot  be  and  ought 
not  to  be  otherwise. 

Now,  how  does  the  person,  or  the  body,  that  is 
responsible  for  the  selection  of  books  for  a  library 
ascertain  the  facts  on  which,  as  has  been  said,  the 
selection  must  be  based?  It  is  usually  not  diffi- 
cult to  find  out  what  the  public  wants.  Its  de- 
mands almost  overwhelm  the  assistant  at  the  desk. 
Some  libraries  provide  special  blank  forms  on  which 
these  requests  may  be  noted.  They  are  often  ca- 
pricious; sometimes  they  do  not  represent  the 
dominant  public  wish.  The  voice  of  one  insistent 
person  asking  for  his  book  day  after  day  may  im- 
press itself  on  the  mind  more  forcibly  than  the 
many  diffident  murmurs  of  a  considerable  number. 
In  libraries  that  possess  a  system  of  branches,  there 
is  little  difficulty  in  recognizing  a  general  public 
demand.  Such  a  demand  will  be  reported  from 
a  large  number  of  branch  libraries  at  once,  in  which 
case  the  chances  of  mistake  will  be  small.  In  the 
New  York  Public  Library  many  useful  suggestions 
are  gained  through  the  operation  of  the  inter- 
branch  loan  system,  whereby  a  user  of  one  branch 
may  send  for  a  book  contained  in  any  other  branch. 
Books  so  asked  for  are  reported  at  the  central 
headquartors,  and  if  they  are  not  in  the  library  at 
all,  (lie  request  is  regarded  as  a  suggestion  for 
365 


THE   BUILDING  OF  A  BOOK 

purchase.  Should  such  requests  come  from  users 
of  several  branches  at  once,  the  desired  book  is 
very  likely  to  be  purchased.  Often  the  demand  is 
general  rather  than  specific,  as  for  "a  book  about 
the  Caucasus"  or  for  "more  works  on  surveying," 
and  sometimes  they  are  vague  or  misleading,  titles 
being  wrong  and  authors'  names  spelled  phoneti- 
cally ;  yet  the  work  made  necessary  in  looking  up 
these  demands  is  more  than  repaid  by  the  knowl- 
edge that  it  may  result  in  making  the  hbrary  of 
more  value  to  the  public. 

In  some  cases  the  librarian  desires  not  only  to 
respond  to  the  public  want,  but  even  to  anticipate 
it.  He  does  not  wait  to  see  whether  a  new  book 
on  Japan  will  be  in  demand,  because  he  is  sure  that 
such  will  be  the  case.  He  does  not  hesitate  to  order 
a  new  book  by  Kipling  or  Mrs.  Humphry  Ward  as 
soon  as  he  sees  its  title  in  the  publisher's  announce- 
ments. The  necessity  for  some  other  anticipatory 
orders  may  be  less  evident,  and  this  kind  of  work 
requires  good  judgment  and  discrimination;  but  in 
general  if  a  book  is  to  be  purchased  on  publication, 
it  cannot  be  on  the  library  shelves  too  soon  after 
the  date  of  issue.  In  any  case,  where  it  is  desirable 
and  proper  to  please  the  public,  double  pleasure  can 
be  given  by  promptness ;  hence  the  importance  of 
being  a  little  before,  rather  than  a  Uttle  behind,  the 
popular  desire. 

All  this  calls  for  little  but  quick  and  discriminat- 
ing observation,  —  the  ability  to  feel  and  read  the 
366 


SELECTING   FOR  A   PUBLIC   LIBRARY 

public  pulse  in  matters  literary.  It  is  in  regard  to 
the  second  and  more  important  factor  that  failure 
waits  most  insistently  on  the  librarian.  What  are 
the  public's  needs,  as  distinguished  from  its  de- 
sires? Wliat  ought  it  to  read?  Here  steps  in 
the  "categorical  imperative"  with  a  vengeance. 
The  Hbrarian,  when  he  thinks  of  liis  duty  along  this 
Une,  begins  to  shudder  as  he  reahzes  his  responsi- 
bility as  an  educator,  as  a  mentor,  as  a  trainer  of 
hterary  taste.  Probably  in  some  instances  he  takes 
himself  too  seriously.  But,  no  matter  how  hghtly 
he  may  bear  these  responsibihties,  every  selector 
of  books  for  a  public  library  reahzes  that  he  must 
give  some  consideration  to  this  question.  In  the 
first  place,  there  are  general  needs;  there  are  cer- 
tain standard  books  that  must  be  on  the  shelves 
of  every  well-ordered  library,  no  matter  whether 
they  are  read  or  not.  It  is  his  business  to  provide 
and  recommend  them.  What  are  these  standards? 
No  two  Usts  are  ahkc.  They  start  together :  "the 
Bible  and  Shakespeare"  —  and  then  off  they  go 
in  divergent  paths!  Secondly,  there  are  special 
needs  dependent  on  locality  or  on  the  race  or  tem- 
perament of  the  users  of  a  particular  library.  The 
determination  of  those  needs  in  itsoU  is  a  task  of 
no  small  magnitude;  their  legitimate  satisfaction 
is  sometimes  difficult  in  the  extreme.  To  take  a 
concrete  instance,  the  librarian  may  discover  that 
there  is  in  liis  vifinity  a  Hftic  knot  f)f  people  who 
meet  occasionally  to  talk  over  current  questions, 
307 


THE   BUILDING  OF  A   BOOK 

not  formally,  but  half  by  accident.  They  would 
be  benefited,  and  would  be  greatly  interested,  in 
the  right  sort  of  books  on  economics,  but  they 
have  scarcely  heard  that  there  is  such  a  subject. 
That  the  pubhc  hbrary  might  be  interested  in  them 
and  might  aid  them  would  never  occur  to  any  of 
them.  The  discovery  of  such  people,  the  determi- 
nation of  just  what  books  they  need,  and  the  suc- 
cessful bringing  together  of  man  and  book  —  all 
these  are  the  business  of  the  librarian,  and  it  is 
a  part  of  his  work  that  cannot  be  separated  from 
that  of  book  selection. 

In  much  of  this  work  the  Ubrarian  of  a  large 
Ubrary  must  depend  to  a  great  extent  on  others. 
Both  the  desires  and  the  needs  of  those  who  use 
his  library  he  must  learn  from  the  reports  of  sub- 
ordinates and  from  outside  friends.  The  Hbrarian 
of  a  small  library  can  ascertain  much  personally; 
but  both  librarians  are  largely  dependent  upon 
expert  opinion  in  their  final  selections.  After  con- 
cluding that  the  library  must  have  an  especially 
full  and  good  collection  of  books  on  pottery,  the 
selector  must  go  to  some  one  who  knows,  to  find 
out  what  are  the  best  works  on  this  subject.  When 
there  is  a  good  list,  he  must  know  where  to  find  it, 
or  at  least  where  to  go  to  find  out  where  it  is.  He 
must  consult  all  the  current  publishers'  lists  as  they 
appear,  and  scan  each  catalogue  of  bargains.  His 
list  of  books  wanted  for  purchase  should  far  ex- 
ceed his  abiUty  to  buy,  for  then  he  must,  perforce, 
368 


SELECTING  FOR  A   PUBLIC  LIBRARY 

exercise  his  judgment  and  pick  out  the  best.  If, 
after  all,  the  collection  of  books  in  his  library  is  not 
such  as  to  meet  the  approval  of  the  pubUc,  he  must 
bow  meekly  under  the  weight  of  its  scorn. 

The  deluge  of  books  that  falls  daily  from  the 
presses  is  almost  past  comprehension.  The  num- 
ber of  intelUgent  readers,  thanks  to  the  opportu- 
nities given  by  our  pubUc  libraries,  is  increasing 
in  due  proportion.  To  select  from  the  stream 
what  is  properly  fitted  to  the  demands  of  this  rap- 
idly growing  host  is  a  task  not  to  be  lightly  per- 
formed. That  the  authorities  of  our  Ubraries  do 
not  shrink  from  it  is  fortunate  indeed;  that  the 
result  is  no  worse  than  it  is,  is  a  fact  on  which  the 
reading  public  must  doubtless  be  congratulated. 


300 


RARE  AND  SECOND-HAND  BOOKS 
By  Charles  E.  Goodspeed. 

Books  are  much  more  indestructible  than  is 
generally  supposed.  Furniture,  clothing,  and  most 
of  the  appurtenances  of  the  house  disappear  rapidly 
with  time,  but  books,  by  the  nature  of  their  com- 
ponent material  and  construction,  have  a  longer 
life.  At  least  this  may  be  said  of  books  printed 
before  the  present  era  of  paper  making.  Since  the 
invention  of  printing  in  the  fifteenth  century,  the 
product  of  the  myriad  presses,  principally  in  Europe, 
has  been  enormous,  and  the  output  of  books  in 
the  four  hundred  odd  years  of  printing  defies 
computation.  Wliile  many  have  been  destroyed 
by  use,  fire,  or  other  agencies,  an  immense  number 
exists  at  the  present  time,  and  their  disposal,  made 
necessary  through  death  or  the  breaking  up  of 
households,  is  a  matter  of  practical  consideration. 
As  it  is  usually  impossible  for  the  owner  to  find 
individual  customers,  the  second-hand  book-dealer 
becomes  a  necessity.  The  usefulness  of  the  dealer 
to  the  community  depends  upon  his  honesty,  in- 
telligence, and  industry;  upon  his  honesty,  in  giv- 
ing a  fair  price  to  the  owner,  on  his  intelligence  in 
finding  customers  for  books  apart  from  general 
370 


RARE   AND  SECOND-HAND   BOOKS 

interest,  and  on  his  industry  in  so  conducting  his 
business  that  his  stock  may  not  become  a  mass 
of  ill-assorted  rubbish. 

The  small  collection  of  books  in  the  ordinary 
household  (averaging  usually  not  over  a  few  hun- 
dred volumes),  contains,  it  is  safe  to  say,  a  large 
percentage  of  no  commercial  value.  The  rest  may 
be  valued  either  for  rarity,  for  the  place  which  they 
may  fill  in  some  collection,  or  for  the  intrinsic 
excellence  of  the  edition.  Customers  for  the 
rarities  are  found  amongst  numerous  collectors, 
and  to  a  more  limited  extent  in  the  large  pubUc 
libraries.  Many  individual  buyers  prefer  the 
sterUng  editions  printed  on  rag  paper  by  the  old 
masters  of  the  craft  to  books  of  modern  production, 
and  so  create  a  market  for  good  old  editions. 
Modern  editions  of  standard  authors  are  produced 
so  cheaply,  however,  that  an  old  edition  will  bring 
but  a  small  price  unless  it  has  some  distinguishing 
merit. 

These  points  should  be  borne  in  mind  by  those 
who  have  books  to  sell.  They  should  remember, 
also,  that  the  public  is  to-day  no  longer  interested 
in  many  subjects  on  whicli  books  were  printed  in 
the  past.  It  sliould  also  be  known  that  the  arts, 
the  sciences,  and  the  professions,  have  made  such 
advances  tiiat  old  books  on  these  subjects  are  of 
little  more  value  than  waste  paper,  excepting  in 
the  fcnv  notable  cases  of  books  which  are  of  his- 
torical importance  to  the  stuilent  as  landmarks  of 
371 


THE  BUILDING  OF  A  BOOK 

progress.  The  omission  of  these  works,  of  obsolete 
fiction,  and  the  books  of  the  hour,  reduce  the  bulk 
of  the  ordinary  collection  to  a  small  value. 

It  may  then  properly  be  asked  where  the  valu- 
able books  come  from,  and  how  are  they  obtained  ? 
It  may  safely  be  stated  that  most  rarities  to-day 
are  discovered  in  out-of-the-way  places,  in  old 
collections  or  libraries,  attics,  or  from  sources  which 
have  not  been  investigated  by  the  keen-eyed  col- 
lectors and  dealers.  There  are  comparatively  few 
houses,  at  least  in  the  most  thickly  settled  parts  of 
this  country,  which  have  no  books,  and  in  a  con- 
siderable number  of  these  collections  there  are  at 
least  some  books  which  have  a  degree  of  rarity 
and  a  special  commercial  value.  The  large  private 
libraries  are  also  constantly  being  dispersed,  and, 
excepting  always  the  books  which  are  being  ab- 
sorbed by  the  permanent  collections  of  public  insti- 
tutions, form  a  constant  supply,  passing  from  the 
owner  to  dealer,  from  him  to  a  new  owner,  only  to 
find  their  way  eventually  to  the  market  again. 

Books  are  not  valuable  merely  because  of  age 
(excepting  those  printed  in  the  fifteenth  century), 
nor  solely  on  account  of  their  rarity.  It  is  quite 
apparent  that  a  rare  book  for  which  there  is  no 
demand  can  have  no  value.  It  is  the  combination 
of  desirabiUty  and  rarity  which  gives  value,  and 
that  value  fluctuates  with  the  demand,  being  sub- 
ject to  the  caprice  of  the  collector  or  the  fashion 
of  the  day.  This  may  be  illustrated  by  the  col- 
372 


RARE   AND   SECOND-HAND   BOOKS 

lecting  of  first  editions.  Thirty  years  ago  the  first 
editions  of  modern  authors  brought  small  prices; 
twenty  years  later  they  were  eagerly  sought  for; 
while  now  a  reaction  is  taking  place,  and  only  the 
great  rarities  in  this  hne  find  a  ready  sale. 

At  the  present  time  the  books  which  are  most 
quickly  sold  in  this  country  are  those  relating  to 
American  history,  particularly  those  on  the  dis- 
covery and  settlement  of  the  continent,  the  Indians, 
the  .American  Revolution,  nav}^  local  history,  and 
genealogy,  etc.  Books  on  these  subjects  which  are 
really  rare,  find  a  ready  sale. 

First  editions  of  tlie  early  books  in  belle-^-lettres, 
books  witli  presentation  inscriptions  from  their 
authors,  books  containing  unusual  examples  of 
early  engravers,  or  those  made  famous  by  the 
illustrative  work  of  such  artists  as  Rowlandson, 
Leech,  and  Cruikshank ;  these  are  a  few  of  the  lines 
in  which  there  are  numerous  collectors,  but  it 
should  be  understood  tliat  they  are  onh'  a  few  of 
the  more  conspicuous  out  of  hundreds  of  similar 
Hnes  of  interest.  Tlie  number  of  collectors  is  nmlti- 
plying  with  the  increase  of  the  country's  wealth, 
and  there  is  a  growing  tendency  for  collectors  to 
take  up  new  subjects,  which  very  much  broadens 
the  interest  in  the  books  of  bygone  days.  To 
enumerate  those  subjects  at  length  would  be  but 
to  detail  the  personal  interests  and  hobbies  of 
thousands  of  cultivated  collectors.  Tt  may  be 
safely  prophesied  that  books  which  are  regarded 
373 


THE  BUILDING  OF  A  BOOK 

to-day  as  rare  and  desirable  by  any  considerable 
number  of  collectors  will,  on  the  whole,  command 
a  steady  increase  in  value.  The  tendency,  how- 
ever, is  strongly  toward  a  decrease  in  the  value 
of  books  of  moderate  value  and  a  large  increase 
in  the  value  of  especially  desirable  items.  The 
accounts  given  in  the  daily  press  of  the  finding  of 
valuable  books  are  the  innocent  means  of  mis- 
leading a  great  many  people,  who  labor  under  the 
delusion  that  because  one  early  edition  of  a  book 
commands  a  large  price,  another  edition  of  about 
the  same  time  must  necessarily  have  the  same 
value.  This  is  one  of  many  errors  which  the  pubhc 
entertains  regarding  rare  books.  Not  only  does  a 
few  years'  difference  in  the  date  of  publication 
mean  the  difference  between  a  large  value  and  none 
at  all,  but  often  two  editions,  apparently  the  same, 
bearing  identical  title-pages,  possess  differences  in 
text,  which  are  known  only  to  the  expert,  but 
which  make  a  vast  difference  in  their  value.  Books 
otherwise  valuable,  but  containing  material  defects 
(such  as  lack  of  pages  or  portions  of  pages),  are 
thereby  very  much  reduced  in  value;  in  fact,  the 
value  of  an  imperfect  book  is  usually  but  a  small 
fraction  of  that  of  a  perfect  example.  Not  only 
do  these  grosser  defects  reduce  the  value,  but  it 
sometimes  happens  that  the  mere  absence  of  a 
half  title,  or  advertising  leaves,  or  even  the  fly- 
leaves, will  make  a  considerable  difference.  Such 
points  also  as  the  size  of  the  copy,  whether  it  is 
374 


RARE   AND   SECOND-HAND   BOOKS 

in  original  binding  or  not,  or,  if  rebound,  whether 
the  edges  have  been  trimmed  by  the  binder,  — 
these  all  have  an  important  bearing  upon  prices. 
As  a  rule,  the  nearer  the  book  is  to  the  original 
state  in  which  it  left  the  pubUsher's  hands,  the  more 
valuable  it  will  be. 

The  art  of  the  second-hand  bookseller  requires 
a  knowledge  of  the  science  of  bibliography,  and 
painstaking  attention  to  the  details  and  orderly 
arrangement  of  stock,  with  a  classification  by  sub- 
jects. Other  things  are  desirable,  but  these  are 
indispensable.  The  stock  of  second-hand  books 
should  be  kept  in  such  a  manner  that  any  book 
inquired  for  can  be  instantly  located.  Nothing  is 
more  irritating  both  to  the  dealer  and  to  the  cus- 
tomer than  an  unsuccessful  search  for  a  book  known 
to  be  in  stock.  There  are  probably  very  few  books 
which  at  some  time  will  not  be  desired  by  some 
person;  in  fact,  a  large  portion  of  the  books  in  a 
dealer's  stock  would  be  instantly  sold  if  he  could 
understand  the  particular  feature  which  would  be 
of  interest  to  the  possible  customer.  Usually,  the 
feature  is  there,  and  the  customer  exists.  It  is 
the  book-seller's  business  to  find  both. 

There  is  no  business  in  which  a  thorough  knowl- 
edgf  of  tho  stock  and  a  [minstaking  attention  to 
small  details  are  of  more  importance  than  in  ihe 
selling  of  hooks,  and  witliout  them  tlio  socond-hand 
booksf'Ucr's  cstablishmcnl  degenerates  to  the  level 
of  th(!  junk  shop. 

376 


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